The Daughter of the Tigress Princess
by eeeMa
Summary: This is the long awaited sequel of Princess Kaliiona of Pirate's Swoop. You don't really need to read the first one to understand this. Kali's daughter Toralina doesn't know what to do with her life. She enlists so friends to help her. Romance, lots of it
1. Family Trees

Please read and review! I have no idea where this is going, but if you guys could give me some reviews, I would love you forever! Who wouldn't want my love???? Ok, first of all, I need to write down all the characters. Before I write the sequel to Kali, I have to write this one about her oldest daughter, Toralina, or Torah.

Kali and Liam's Kids

Toralina – 14

Thomath – 12

Nashana – 9

Elena – 6

Mylon – 2

Yuki and Neal's Kids

Anikami – 14

Jakkim – 14

Akio – 9

Akki – 4

Kel and Dom's Kids

Lani – 14

Raoul – 12

Adie – 10

Owen – 7

Kayette – 4

Roald and Shinko's Kids

Lianokami – 15

Jassikam – 13

Tomokami – 11

Kalakami – 8

Jonathan – 4

Kaddar and Kalasin

Zamar - 15

Faziah - 13

Razan - 10

Thayet - 4

Okay, those are all the characters for Torah's book. Torah is debating whether to be a fighter like her parents or to learn magic at the university. Meanwhile, there will by a lot of romance. I'll post the first chapter tomorrow because I have dance practice at five in the morning tomorrow and it's already ten!

Kaliona is learning Shang fighting from Liam. She is training to become the Shang Tigress. Mylon and Elena are both learning from Liam. Thomath is a page at the palace. Nashana is at the convent. Have fun!


	2. Roald Gets Angry

Please read and review! I have no idea where this is going, but if you guys could give me some reviews, I would love you forever! I own nothing. Enjoy! By the way, Torah is a flirt and has kissed both Jakkin of Queenscove and Prince Jassikam. She doesn't mean anything by that, and they know it. I don't know who she really likes yet. Popular vote will win!

**OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO**

Torah hummed to herself while looking in the mirror, doing her hair. That was her main vanity. It fell in crows-wing black to her waist in curls. Torah's eyes were a bright blue, but they changed to violet in the winter. That suited Torah just fine. She smiled at her perfect reflection in the mirror and danced downstairs.

Only her parents were awake. Torah greeted them silently, kissing them both on each cheek. Torah had only recently returned from her trip from the Yamani Islands where her, her foster-aunt Kel, and her friend Lani had been visiting. Torah had perfected the showing no emotion part and the fan throwing, but she couldn't for the life of her, use a glaive.

Liam Bell grinned at his daughter. She bowed Yamani style back to him. "Good morning, Da." She said cheerfully. She smoothed her bright violet gown before standing up straight again.

Princess Kaliona also smiled at her daughter. "Torah, I hope that you are going to visit your aunt Kalasin for Midwinter this year. Liam and I are going. She and Faziah would look forward to seeing you."

Torah smiled and curtsied. "Oh, I had nearly forgotten about that until now. Yes, Ma, I will go with you. Oh, dear, I am late yet again. My friends are going to kill me. Bye, Mother, Father!"

Torah swept from the room. She quickly changed into breeches and went to meet her friends. Jakkin of Queenscove was already waiting there with his older sister. He looked very impatient. When he spotted Torah, he groaned in relief.

"Thank the gods one of you showed up early! I'm surprised that you and Lani weren't the first ones here. I haven't seen you two since you got back from the Islands. How was it?"

Torah winked at him. "It was dazzling. It's nice to see you too."

Anikami groaned. At age fifteen, she was the oldest daughter of Neal and Yuki, another pair of Torah's adopted relatives. She was a squire to Lady Alanna. Since it was the summer, she had been able to get away from her knight-master. She hated watching her brother and friend flirt, even if they were only joking around. Even though she was half-Yamani, she had inherited her father's green eyes and love for drama. The words as expressionless as a Yamani meant nothing to her. She and her brother weren't very good at not showing emotion.

"I'm here!" Prince Jassikam and Princess Lianokami had arrived. The prince walked over to stand next to Torah. She shook her head and mouthed _flirt with me later, not while Liano's watching_. He winked back and turned to talk to Jakkin.

The last member of the group was Ilane of Masbolle. She was a beauty. She had beautiful blue eyes and curly dark brown hair that fell to her shoulders. She was a fourth-year page and Ani and Torah's best friend. She had the perfect Yamani expression. You could see no emotion on her face at all.

"So, where are we going today?" Jakkin asked.

Torah smiled back. "We should go for a ride."

"That's boring." The prince exclaimed. Torah raised an eyebrow at him.

Ani glared. "Well, we could turn it into a picnic if you feel like going to badger the cook about giving us food. I mean, you are the prince; what can she do to you?" The cook was a grouchy old lady who hit anyone who dared to enter her kitchen without her permission with her wooden spoon.

Jasson shuddered. "No, thank you. I'm perfectly fine with just going on a ride. Let's go to the stables. I'm going to ride my father's horse today!"

Liano shrugged. "We'll be at your funeral." Torah said sweetly. Jasson turned to smile at her. Liano groaned and shoved them both towards the stables.

"Do I have to watch you two flirting?" She complained. She shook her head and went off to walk with Lani and Ani. Jakkin came to walk at Torah's other side.

"So, Milady, will you dance with me at the ball two weeks from today?" He said in a highly dramatic voice. Torah smiled back sweetly before hitting him in the arm. "Ow, what was that for?"

"Nothing." Torah replied wickedly. Before stalking off to walk with the princess, she turned back to Jakkin. "Yes, I shall dance with you, my brave knight!"

Liano and Lani rolled their eyes. Ani, however, turned to Torah, a big grin on her face. "If you're going to the ball with my brother, does that mean that Jasson is still open?"

Torah snorted. "You had better hurry!" Liano groaned and she and Lani walked even faster to get away from their love-struck friends. Ani and Torah burst out in giggles.

After getting to the stables, Lani and Liano galloped off immediately. They were both excellent riders. Ani and the prince were okay. They followed the girls at a canter. Torah and Jakkin were terrible riders. It didn't help that they were afraid of horses. Torah couldn't go faster than a trot.

After a while, Torah grew bored of riding. She decided to ride back to the palace. She said good-bye to Jakkin and rode back. Once there, she nearly collided into the king. He was furious.

"Toralina, have you seen my horse?" He demanded. Torah raised an eyebrow at him and he sighed. "Sorry, do you know where he is? I've been looking everywhere."

Torah smiled. "Don't fret, Uncle. I don't know where he is, but I know that Jasson does." Roald swore and walked back to his horse's stall.

Liam came to get Torah. "Torah, your mother would like to speak to you. She is upstairs in her rooms."

Torah nodded and ran up to her rooms. She banged her fist on the door, nearly falling when her mother opened it right away. She caught herself and rose an eyebrow at her mother.

"Sorry, Torah. We need to talk. Sit down please." Torah did as she was told. Kali began to pace around the room. "So, you are fourteen years old. What are you planning on doing with your life? You could go to the convent with your sister, or you could be a page with your brother. You could even learn Shang from your father. You need to choose, though."

Torah looked at her mother, astonished. "Why must I go? Can I not just stay here like I have been doing? Ma, I've learned plenty here. I know how to flirt, how to kiss, how to make men fall in love with me. What?"

Kali rolled her eyes. "Stop it. You know that you need some form of activity in your life. When I was your age, I was a princess and a page. What'll you be?"

Torah thought for a moment. It pained her to leave her friends, but there would be plenty of men to flirt with at the university here in Corus. She would even be able to visit Jakkin and Jasson once in a while. She really liked magic. "Ma, could I train as a sorcerer?"

Kali smiled slightly. "We would prefer if you stayed here to train as a Shang. Relax, I'm only joking. I know how much you love fighting." She winked. Torah stuck her tongue out.

"Now, go get packed. You'll need to move your stuff down to the university. I will write a letter to your Uncle Numair. Hey, you'll probably be friends with his daughter. She's only a year older than you. His son is your age."

Torah grinned. She had been right. She already had someone to flirt with. Her mother noticed her grin and rolled her eyes. "Yes , they'll be plenty of young men for you. Hurry up and get packed! Maybe Thom will be one of your teachers."

Torah giggled. What luck! She would be able to pull pranks on her uncle and her adopted-uncle! She would have so much fun this year!

OOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Not that exciting. I am so sorry that I took so long. I've been brain-dead. You guys should really help me out. I need ideas, and I don't know who Torah should end up with. It'll be popular vote! The choices are Jasson, Rikash, or Jakkin. I also apologize for this chapter. It's pretty boring. I promise that the next one will be better. PLEASE REVIEW & TEEL ME IDEAS AND ANSWER THE QUESTION ABOVE!!! Thank you!


	3. Pink Lightning

Please read and review! I have no idea where this is going, but if you guys could give me some reviews, I would love you forever! I own nothing. Enjoy! By the way, Torah is a flirt and has kissed both Jakkin of Queenscove and Prince Jassikam. She doesn't mean anything by that, and they know it. I don't know who she really likes yet. Popular vote will win!

**OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO**

Torah grinned to herself. She had finally got all of her things moved into her new room at the university. She put the blue robes of a Novice on and admired herself in the mirror. There was a knock at her door. She hurried to answer it. A boy a couple inches taller than her stood there. He smiled at her. He too wore the blue robes.

"Hi. I was told to come and get you. Master Numair would like to speak to you and learn what kind of magic you have. If you would follow me, please, Toralina."

Torah shrugged and followed the dark-haired boy. He looked about fourteen. He had curly black hair and big brown-gray eyes. Torah smiled at him. He was handsome enough for Torah to flirt with.

"I'm Torah. What's your name?"

The boy smiled back. "I'm Rikash. My father's told me allot about you. Do you really have that powerful magic? You must get it from Lady Alanna. She's got a really powerful Gift."

Torah laughed. "Yes, my magic is pretty powerful. I don't really care that much though. Your Gift is probably more powerful than mine. Can you really shape-shift?"

Rikash nodded. "Yeah. I'm not as good as my sister though. My wild magic isn't as powerful as hers. We're here. Just go through that door and ask for Numair. You'll see what I mean."

Torah waved to him before stepping through the door. She looked around the room. A table sat in the middle of it. There were chairs around it. She walked over and sat in one. She heard a squeak and jumped up.

A little black blob had squeaked at her. "What are you?" Torah asked it. She shook her head, a little confused.

"Darking." It squeaked. "I am darking. Daine rescue me. I am Moon the darking. What are you?"

Torah laughed. She had heard of darkings from Daine before. They were created from blood a long time ago by her Aunt Kally's husband's father. This particular one was very curious. "I'm Torah. Do you know where Numair is?"

The darking bobbed it's 'head' up and down. "That way." It pointed to a door. Torah thanked him and knocked on the door.

"Come in." Numair said. Torah opened the door. Master Numair sat behind a desk that wasn't visible due to large stacks of papers and spell books. He looked up, obviously surprised. Torah fought the urge to roll her eyes.

"Master Numair may be the greatest mage in the world," her adopted uncle Neal had told her once. "But that doesn't keep him from being a little bit scatterbrained. He'll be walking down to breakfast, but then he'll get distracted and end up not eating that day. Lucky for him, Daine usually reminds him."

Torah smiled at Numair. "You called me in here. You wanted to test out my magic."

Numair blinked and then smiled. "Oh, yes! I remember. Come here. Sit right there. This won't hurt. I'm just looking at what classes to enroll you in."

Torah looked into his eyes. She felt an odd sensation of something entering her mind. She quickly blocked it out. Numair winced in pain. Torah realized that it had only been him.

"Sorry. Is there any other way to do this? I don't think I can put my walls down for even a second."

Numair nodded. "Give me a piece of your hair. The only other way to do this is to get a piece of your essence. Would you light that fire? If I try to, I'll end up blasting a hole in the wall."

Torah obeyed. Numair placed a hand near the fire and muttered something. The fire turned black. "Put a hair in." He instructed.

Torah placed a hair in the fire. Numair watched the fire for a while. He finally stood up and turned back to Torah. "You have almost everything. You'll have to take healing, war magic, mind magic, seer magic, and weather magic. The only thing you don't have is the ability to scry. That's very odd." He frowned.

Torah shrugged. "So what's my schedule?" Numair frowned for a moment before turning to a sheet of paper. He started writing on it.

"There you go. Breakfast tomorrow is at eight. I'll see then." Torah left the room just as he sat down at his desk again. She looked at her schedule.

_Wake Up - 7_

_Breakfast – 8_

_Seer Magic – Thom of Pirate's Swoop – 9 o'clock _

_Mind Powers – Numair Salmalin 10:30 o'clock _

_Lunch – 12_

_Healing – Baird of Queenscove – 1 o'clock _

_War Magic – Evelina of Macayhill – 2:30 o'clock_

_Weather Magic – Gaviena of King's Reach – 5 o'clock _

_Dinner – 6_

_Lectures – 7 _

_Free Period – 8_

_Lights Out - 11 _

Torah shook her head at his scrawl. Why did men always have to write so messy? She could barely even read this! According to the paper, she had to get to dinner!

The next day, Torah woke up as the bell sounded. She quickly got up and pulled her blue robes on. She couldn't wait for her first class. She loved magic!

There was a knock on her door. Rikash and another girl entered. Torah eyed the girl. She had long red hair that fell to her shoulders in curls. She had deep hazel eyes. Torah yelped and ran to hug her younger cousin, Melaniah. She was only one year younger than Torah.

Rikash grinned at the cousins. Torah winked at him and turned to Melaniah. She grinned evilly. Melaniah's eyes widened and she started laughing.

"Yes, I agree." She laughed.

Rikash looked at the girls with a confused expression on his face. Torah glanced at him and started to laugh. Ever since the cousins were little, they had been able to finish each other's sentences. "We're going to prank Master Thom." Torah said wickedly. "And maybe even your father."

Rikash laughed. "Can I help?"

Torah grinned. "Of course." The bell for breakfast rang. The three of them ran out into the hall to get fed.

During breakfast, the three of them formed a plan. Torah wanted to wait a month. Her uncle knew her well. The three of them all had seer magic, so they rushed to class. The classroom was nearly full. Torah seated herself in the front row. Rikash sat beside her, and Melaniah sat behind her.

Thom entered the room. He smiled at Torah, who waved cheekily back. The rest of the class sniggered loudly. Thom rolled his eyes.

"Class, this is my annoying niece, Toralina of Conte and Olau. You should be careful of her. She likes pranks and flirting."

Torah stood up and bowed. "Thank you Uncle! You know me so well!"

Thom rolled his eyes. "Sit down! Okay, today, we're going to begin with a basic spell. We're going to look into the fire. Torah, you first. Tell me what you see."

Torah stood up and turned to the fireplace. She quickly used her magic to start a little fire. She looked at it and it turned amethyst, the color of her, Thom's, and Mel's Gifts. She looked at it, thinking of the spell.

A picture of Liano, Jasson, Jakkin, Ani, Lani, and herself formed in the fire. They were surrounded by bandits. Torah gasped and looked back at Thom.

"I-I saw my friends and I surrounded by bandits." She said quietly. She looked up at her uncle.

Thom smiled sadly. "Come up here Rikash." Rikash looked into the fire and blushed crimson. "I-I'd rather not say." Thom shrugged and called on the next person.

Next was their class with Numair. Melaniah had a different class. Rikash and Torah went to their class together. Torah asked him what he had seen in the fire again.

He blushed. "No-nothing that important. I'll tell if it ever comes true."

Torah shrugged. "Okay. Hurry up; we want good seats."

However, she didn't need to be worried. The chairs were only half-filled. It seemed that mind control was one of the rarer extents of the Gift. She and Rikash took spots near the front again.

Numair entered the room. He frowned at Rikash who had been talking. Rikash blushed and turned around. He then smiled and began to talk.

"Mind control is one of the rarer Gifts that people have. With mind control, you can move objects, untie ropes, and even read people's thoughts. It is very useful. Today, however, we'll be starting with a basic spell. All we're going to do is attempt to move these a little." He gave each student a little twig. "Go on."

Torah's moved right away. She caused it to zip across the room and hit Rikash in the head. Rikash got his a little while later and tried to hit Torah. When Numair came back, they were having a swordfight without touching their sticks. Numair nodded to them.

Healing and War Magic were pretty basic. It was nothing that Torah hadn't done before. The class that really interested her was weather magic. Not even Rikash had weather magic. It was only Torah and a slim girl in the red robes of Adept. When Torah got there, the other girl was causing it to rain.

Torah walked up to her. "How are you doing that?" Torah asked. The girl jumped and the rain stopped. The girl smiled sheepishly.

"I'm sorry. I'm used to it only being me here. You should be downstairs learning how to scry. I'm the only weather mage here."

Torah shook her head. "I can't scry. I was told to come up here to weather magic and learn from Gaviena of King's Reach."

The other girl grinned. "Oh, all right then. I'm Gaviena, but please call me Gavi. What is your name?"

"I'm Toralina of Conte and Olau. Please call me Torah."

Gavi grinned. "All right then. This is what you have to do." Slowly Gavi raised her arms to the clouds. The rain began to fall. "Call the rain down from the clouds. Go on; you try!"

Torah slowly raised her arms up to the clouds and called the rain to her. Suddenly, a heavy downpour drenched her. "Stop!" She yelled to the clouds. The clouds parted, and the rain stopped.

Gavi was looking at her weirdly. "What?" Torah demanded. She hated when people stared at her strangely. Gavi glanced back up at the sky.

"It took me years to call the rain down. I think that maybe you should be teaching me. You're better than I am."

Torah sighed. "I-I don't know. I don't know what else to do. Should I try calling lightning down or something?"

Gavi nodded. "Try to and then tell me."

Torah closed her eyes and called the lightning. She opened her eyes when she heard Gavi gasp. Torah looked down at herself. It seemed as though she was lightning. A strange energy filled her veins. She looked at Gavi in excitement.

"You try it! It doesn't hurt at all!" Torah exclaimed. The older girl raised her arms. Torah noticed that she was trembling. Suddenly, a small lightning bolt came down on the girl. She gasped again.

"Torah! Look at me! I'm lightning! I'm actually lightning!" Gavi laughed. Torah suddenly grinned.

"Gavi, we should go down and scare our teachers and friends. Come on; just ask it to stay with you and it will!" Gavi looked thoughtful. After a second, she smiled and agreed.

The two girls knocked on the door to the scrying room. Numair answered it. He stared at the girls and his face broke into a grin.

"Great job, Gavi! Look at you; you called lightning to you. And you even taught our little Torah here!"

Gavi shook her head. "It was the exact opposite, Master Numair. She called lightning from the sky. A huge bolt came and touched her. She taught me. I have to admit though, my bolt wasn't as big as hers."

Numair laughed as Torah shrugged. "Is my uncle in there?" She asked wryly. Numair stepped aside and the two girls walked past him. Torah was aware of everyone staring at them. She waved to Thom, who was also staring.

"Uncle Thom, let me help you with that!" Torah said grinning evilly. Thom raised an eyebrow at her and rolled his eyes.

"There is no way that I'm letting you touch me. I really don't feel like getting shocked, thanks. No! Torah!" She had lunged for him. He only got away in time. The class started laughing. Torah shrugged at Thom and pretended to be sad.

"You never let me have anything, Uncle Thom! I quit! I declare you rude to me!" Torah pretended to storm from the room. Before she could leave, Thom called her back.

"Hey, Torah! Can you answer a question for me?" Torah turned to give her uncle a glare. "Why did you never join the Players?"

Torah smiled. "I would have, except Ma and Da wanted me to become a Shang. Alanna was trying to get me to become a knight. I should have run away." Thom started laughing as she put a mock-thoughtful look on her face. "Uncle, you had better learn to sleep with your eyes open!"

The class roared with laughter as the two lightning girls stalked out of the room. Later, at dinner, Gavi asked Torah to eat outside with her. Torah agreed. The two girls even 'fed' the lightning strawberries, turning it pink.

At lectures later that night, Numair talked about essence. Torah actually listened to him, instead of making jokes to Melaniah, Gavi, and Rikash. Torah wanted to know more about essence.

"We carry our essence everywhere, in our skin, in our hair, in our nails. This means that everything we touch picks up some of ourselves. The longer the contact, the more the essence is transferred. Thus, if you get clothing someone has worn when he or she has been active, or hot, or upset, the clothing will supply you with more than enough essence to work a spell. Mages favor essence spells for things such as locks and keys, because spells can be linked to the owner alone. They are foolproof. They work if the owner touches something in a hurry, under stress, or in the cold. And there are ways to go around such spells."

Before Numair could tell them what those were, the bell rang for free period. Torah, Melaniah, and Rikash went to go work on some homework. It took them little time at all to finish it. After finishing it, Torah opened the window and called her lightning friend down to her.

"Why's it pink?" Rikash asked.

Torah grinned at him. "I fed it strawberries. I didn't know lightning could eat!"

Mel and Rikash started laughing. "I'm so glad that you're here, Torah. I missed you. It was so dreadfully boring here without you. Wasn't it Rikash?"

He nodded and grinned. "Thom especially." Both girls started laughing.

"You should hear what stories my mother has to tell about him." Torah said. Before she could say anything, the bell rang.

Torah yawned and gathered up her stuff. "Come on, Toma." The other two stared at her. She glared back. "What? I decided to name the pink lightning after my uncle, but I wanted it to be a girl! Toma, let's go to my room!" To the other two's surprise, the lightning followed Torah. She stuck her tongue out at the other two.

Torah smiled before she went to bed. This had been one of the best days in her life! It was a long day, though, and she was tired. Torah didn't even remember her head hitting the pillow.

**OOOOOOOOOOOOOO**

Better? I hope. Thank you for the idea SOPROL. I love you! I don't know who Torah should end up with. It'll be popular vote! The choices are Jasson, Rikash, or Jakkin. I also apologize for this chapter. It's pretty boring. I promise that the next one will be better. PLEASE REVIEW & TELL ME IDEAS AND ANSWER THE QUESTION ABOVE!!! Thank you!

PS. These are the robe colors:

Novice – blue

Intermediate – green

Adept – red

Master – white

Powerful Sorcerer – black


	4. Torah's Flirtations

Disclaimer: I am not the all-famous, all-power Tamora Pierce. I do not own any of these characters and I do not own the wonderful world of Tortall.

I would really like it if you would review. Is it so hard to press that colored button down there? (I will not say which color because I do not want to get into an argument over it.)

Please read and review! I have no idea where this is going, but if you guys could give me some reviews, I would love you forever! I own nothing. Enjoy! By the way, Torah is a flirt and has kissed both Jakkin of Queenscove and Prince Jassikam. She doesn't mean anything by that, and they know it. I don't know who she really likes yet. Popular vote will win!

**OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO**

Torah sighed to herself. It had been three months since she had arrived at the university. She, Mel, and Rikash had playing plenty of pranks on Thom and Numair. Torah was working on a new one that she planned to do to Thom soon.

There was a squeaking sound from behind her. Torah spun around to glare at Toma. Toma was a pink lightning bolt. It had acquired its color by 'eating' strawberries. Toma was named for Torah's Uncle Thom. It liked to take on the shape of a dragon.

Torah went back to her spell. She tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. She hated when her hair was in her face. The strand of hair popped out again and Torah groaned and got up to dig in her stuff for a ribbon.

She heard laughter. She spun around to face her door. A boy of fourteen stood there. He was a few inches taller than Torah's five-five. He had blue-gray eyes and straight black hair. He wore the blue robes of a Novice mage. He pointed up at the lightning dragon. Torah swore loudly when she saw that Toma had stolen her ribbon. It wasn't much of a ribbon anymore.

Torah turned to face the boy. "How long have you been standing there, Rikash?" She demanded. She and Rikash had been best friends for a long time.

He shrugged. "Five minutes. I didn't want to interrupt you. You looked busy. What is that by the way?" He pointed at the spell books that Torah had open on her lap and table.

Torah smiled. "A little prank that Lord Master Thom won't like at all. You can come in you know. Just close the door." Rikash shrugged and obeyed. Torah turned back to the spell books.

They both looked up confused when there was a knock on Torah's door a few seconds later. The only others who would be bothered with knocking on Torah's door were Melaniah or Gaviena, and they were both away.

Torah stood and answered it. In a few seconds, she was knocked on her back by a boy and two girls. Torah sat up and held her head. She turned to get a better look at her attackers. In a moment she threw herself on the taller girl.

"Anikami! I thought that you knew better than that! You nearly killed me!" Torah said to her best friend.

The half-Yamani was a beauty. She looked exactly like her mother, except for her emerald green eyes. She had inherited those and her love for drama from her father. She was a fifteen year old squire to Sir Owen of Jesslaw. She grinned back at her friend.

"It wasn't me who knocked you over. I merely hugged you. It was my madly in love brother who knocked you over! Go say hi to Lani!"

The second girl was a tall brunette. Unlike Ani, her face was expressionless. Her big blue eyes were crinkled, the only sign of her laughing. Ilane of Masbolle was another one of Torah's good friends. She was a fourth year page.

"Lani, look at you! You're almost as beautiful as me!" Lani's eyes crinkled even more as Ani burst out laughing. Torah gave Lani a quick hug before turning to the third member of the group. Torah smiled flirtatiously and batted her long eyelashes. Jakkin of Queenscove smiled back.

"Well, Master Jakkin of Queenscove, have you forgot about me all this time? I was wondering if you were ever going to come for a visit." Torah said. Her voice was as sweet as honey. She loved flirting with Jakkin, even though they both did it out of fun.

Jakkin grinned and took a bow usually reserved for a king. Torah pulled her fan from her sash and patted Jakkin's shoulder with it. She winked.

"Are you not going to kiss me, fair lady?" Jakkin flirted back.

Torah gave a giggle. "I thought that was the man's job, sir page, but I would happily oblige." She gave him a peck on the cheek. "Better?"

Jakkin raised an eyebrow, still managing to look handsome. "I was thinking of something more along the lines of this." He kissed her hard on the lips. Torah returned the kiss, ignoring the groans of Ani. They pulled apart after a long moment. Torah stuck her tongue out at Ani.

"You're just jealous that I have no trouble getting boys to love me. Everyone is in love with me! I'm beautiful!" Torah said. She was only kidding, and her friends knew that. It still didn't keep Ani from snorting loudly. Torah frowned at her. "I'll have you know that I will not tolerate that rudeness in here." Jakkin and Ani burst out laughing. Lani smiled a little bit.

Torah turned to where Rikash was. "This is my friend…" Torah looked up at Ani, confused. Rikash was gone.

Surprisingly, it was Lani who spoke. "He slipped out of the room while you and Jakkin were…occupied. He was even more uncomfortable than Ani and I."

Torah shrugged, unconcerned. "I don't know why you guys are so upset. Jakkin and I both know that it's a game. We're both big flirts. You guys should get used to it. I know that Jakkin has kissed like all the girls at Court his age. I've kissed a lot of boys too. I even kissed Prince Jassikam a few times."

"What!" Ani and Lani both yelled. Torah giggled.

"What is your problem? How could you not know that? We were both talking about it forever. Liano was furious. She's over it now, after seeing us so much."

Ani and Lani looked at each other, both speechless, before turning back to stare at Torah. Finally Toma broke the silence by dropping a strawberry on Torah's head. Torah turned to glare at her pink lightning friend.

"Toma! Stop it! You're supposed to be on my side! Stop it!" She yelled as another strawberry was thrown at her. The lightning dragon squeaked with joy as it sent another one flying at Torah. It hit Jakkin in the face when she ducked.

The three girls started to laugh. Jakkin scowled at them and threw his arms up in the air. He looked so much like his father when he did that. Torah started laughing even harder. Jakkin shook his head. Torah kissed him softly on the mouth again.

"You are so adorable when you're confused. Toma, I'm going to put you outside! Toma, no!" Toma sat on Torah's head. Torah felt herself become lightning again. "Toma!" She cried.

The lighting dragon made a funny noise that sounded a bit like laughter. Torah shook her head at it and turned back to her friends, all of which were staring at her in awe.

Torah wasn't surprised that Ani was the first to speak. "What is that thing? Why is it flinging strawberries at you? Did you turn into lightning?"

Lani's eyes were wide on her otherwise expressionless face. Jakkin's mouth was open in shock. Torah laughed and shook the lightning off of her. She kissed Jakkin on the lips. "That's the third time I've kissed you today. I don't think that you've been that good." She turned back to Ani. "Yes, I can turn into lightning if it touches me. That is my friend Toma. She's really a blot of lightning that turned pink when I fed it strawberries. She loves annoying people."

Ani started laughing. "You named her after your uncle, didn't you?"

Torah smiled back wryly. "How did you guess? Now, if you three would excuse me, I'll change into some real clothes and take you for a tour. Shoo!" The three of them walked out of Torah's rooms.

Torah looked at herself in the mirror. Her black hair reached her waist. It wasn't as wavy as it had been three months ago. Since it was nearly Midwinter, Torah's eyes were a deep violet. During the summer, they would change back into royal blue.

Torah slipped out of her robe and into a pair of tan breeches. She tucked a blue loose-fitting shirt into them. She completed her outfit with a pair of brown boots that nearly reached her knees. She went to meet her friends.

The four of them hadn't gone far, when there was a shriek and another body hit into Torah. She winced and embraced her cousin Mel. Mel was only one year younger than Torah and took after her father. She had copper hair than reached her shoulders in curls and bright blue eyes.

"Mel, I'm sure you remember my friends, Ani, Lani, and Jakkin. You guys, this is my little cousin Melaniah. Call her Mel though." Jakkin gave a deep bow, eyes twinkling with mirth as he kissed Mel's hand. She raised her eyebrows at Torah.

"Now, now, Jakkin. You already have the prettiest girl in the world madly in love with you. Stop flirting with Lady Toralina's little cousin, no matter how cute she is."

Jakkin turned to grin. "Only if you give me a kiss." Torah sighed and waggled her fingers at him, smiling playfully.

"Your stakes are high, lord page, but I will happily oblige." They kissed yet again. Torah loved kissing. It was so fun!

Torah and Mel introduced her friends to Gaviena, Numair, and Thom. Jakkin and Ani's grandfather, Duke Baird, was pleased to see his two oldest grandchildren. He shook his head when Torah asked him innocently if he would like to see Thom with pink hair.

"Is that the latest of your pranks? Never mind; don't answer that. I really don't want to know. If it is, you should be careful. He'll never forgive you if you get his hair dyed permanently."

After that, they went to look for Rikash. He had strangely disappeared. Near dinnertime, they decided to give up.

"I don't know where he could be." Torah said, frowning. She was a little upset with him for not showing up. Soon enough, her mind was on other things. Her uncle was lecturing her for not wearing her robe to dinner. Torah pretended to listen, while really muttering the spell to make his hair turn pink.

His hair turned pink. Only Torah and Lani managed to keep straight faces. Thom looked at Torah in frustration. "Are you even paying attention, Toralina?!"

Torah smiled sweetly. "Nope. Come on; you can't tell me that you're surprised! I never listen to you!"

Thom stalked off. Only then did Torah burst into laughter. Ani, Lani, and Jakkin had to leave soon though. Ani turned to Torah right before kicking her mount into a gallop.

"Promise to visit?" She asked pleadingly.

Torah shook her head. "I can't. Once Thom finds out what I did to his hair, he won't let me leave until Midwinter. I'll be in Carthak during Midwinter. I'm going to go and visit my Aunt Kally! It'll be so much fun! I'll miss you, though!"

Meanwhile, Rikash lay on his bed thinking. There was a knock on his door. He ignored it until he heard Mel's shrill voice ringing, "Rikash, I know that you're in there, and if you don't open the door, then I will break it down!"

Rikash knew that she would, so he opened it. Mel entered the room, red in the face from getting worked up and glaring. "Where have you been the whole day?!" She demanded. "I got back from the capital today and you weren't even there to greet me!"

Rikash sighed. "I don't know what happened."

Mel's face softened a little. "You know that you can tell me anything, right?"

Rikash smiled. He hesitated for a moment before saying, "Yes, I know. Well, earlier today, I was in Torah's rooms talking with her. Suddenly her door opened and she was knocked to the floor by her friends. She kissed the boy. I-I think that I'm jealous. I know that I've had feelings, the friend kind and the other kind, since the first day I've met her. I think I'm falling in love with her."

Mel smiled slightly. "Torah and her flirtations. Don't worry about her. She loves flirting and kissing. It's one of her favorite pastimes. She doesn't really like Jakkin, and he doesn't really like her. They are just both big flirts."

Rikash smiled brightly. He looked so relieved. Mel didn't have the heart to tell him that her cousin had broken countless men's hearts and would probably break his too. Instead, she kissed Rikash's cheek and went to her own room.

On the way back to the palace, Jakkin kept thinking about Torah. Usually, he just wanted a female companion, someone to flirt with. But Torah, Torah was different. She was smart and funny and beautiful. Jakkin was in love with her. He couldn't wait into he saw her again.

Torah, Rikash, and Jakkin all went to bed with smiles on their faces. Torah was unaware of how difficult her life was about to get. Jakkin didn't know that Torah's friend was in love with her. Rikash didn't know that Torah was going to break his heart.

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How was it? You should really review so I would know if you like it or not! I don't care if they're flames or nice reviews! I really like writing about Torah. She's a really funny character. Okay, I need to know what you guys would prefer. Would you like her to end up with Rikash, Jakkin, or Prince Jassikam? Put your answer in your review please! I only have one so far, thank you so much SOPROL for sending in a vote! You rock! I'd also like to thank one reader who was one of my first and has stuck through them and reviewed every chapter! Thank you so much C.McPherson! I love you! The next chapter will be up soon! It's the weekend; I have a lot of free time! By the way, Mel is NOT in love with Rikash. When she kissed him on the cheek, it was only because she felt bad about Torah going to break his heart and her not saying anything. Okay, bye…REVIEW IF YOU WANT ANOTHER CHAPTER!!!!

PS. These are the robe colors:

Novice – blue

Intermediate – green

Adept – red

Master – white

Powerful Sorcerer – black


	5. Midwinter's Luck

I am so evil to poor Rikash and Jakkin! I have added another boy for Torah. Just read and see if you like him better than the other two, then send in your vote saying who you want her to end up with. The choices are…Jakkin, Zamar, Rikash, or Jassikam! Thanks a lot. Also, if you have any ideas, please send them in. I know that it's only the fourth chapter, but I need some ideas. Okay, please go ahead and read. After you're done reading, then REVIEW or you will be cursed with…with…something! REVIEW!

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"Say goodbye!" Kali told Torah. Torah groaned and turned back to where Rikash, Mel, and Gavi were standing. She hugged Mel.

"See ya later, Mel. I'll tell Aunt Kally that you said hi." Mel beamed back and stepped aside to stand by Rikash. "Bye Gavi!" She hugged the older girl. Finally she turned to Rikash. He smiled at her. "I'll be back soon, Rikash!" She gave him a hug.

Torah stepped away from her friends to stand by her mother again. "Mother, I think that Toma wants to come. Can she, please?"

Kali looked at the little pink dragon made out of lightning. She shook her head in exasperation and nodded to Torah. Torah gave a squeal of joy and hugged her mother. "I think we should go say goodbye to Uncle Thom and Numair. Come on!" She dragged her mother into the building.

An hour later, they met up with Torah's two sisters, Nashana and Elena. Torah looked them over. Nashana was at the convent learning how to act ladylike. She was almost as big of a flirt as Torah was, even if she was not even ten yet. She had red hair and bright sapphire eyes. She was small and had a tiny nose that her Grandma Alanna had given her. Elena, on the other hand, was only six. She was a fighter. She had started learning Shang from her parents at age three and was already quite good. She also had blue eyes, but her hair was as black as Torah's. She was also small for her age. Torah hugged them both.

Kali picked Elena up. "Your Father and brothers won't be coming. Liam is doing something for the king again, Thomath couldn't get off, and Mylon didn't want to come. It'll be just us girls."

Nashi grinned. "That's good. Boys that are related to me are no fun. You can't flirt with family! Not that I would want to, though!" She added quickly as Torah giggled.

"Then you won't be flirting with Prince Razan, will you? He is your cousin!" Kali said slyly.

Nashi groaned. "He's my second cousin! I'm allowed to flirt with him! I won't flirt with him, _if_ Torah doesn't flirt with Zamar!"

Torah snorted. "No deal! Of course I'm flirting with Zamar! He's so handsome! He has big blue eyes, tan skin, rich black hair, muscles…"

Elena groaned. "Torah! Talk about me instead!" She said in her little voice. She was ignored as Torah kept talking about her second cousin.

Kali sighed and turned to Nashi. "Now look what you did! She's going to be talking about him the whole way there!" Nashi giggled.

Two days later, **(A/N – I know that this would take longer, but I need them to get there by Midwinter, so please just go along with it!)** Torah and her family arrived in Carthak.

Torah was the first to get off of the ship. She was tackled by a girl a year younger than her. Her friend Faziah giggled and helped her up. Torah frowned as she rubbed her head. Finally, she grinned at the princess, saying, "That's the second time this month!"

Faziah laughed. "Sorry. I'm so excited to see you though! You look well! That dress goes great on you! Come on; you need to tell me about all the men you've met lately!"

Torah's violet dress did look great on her. It hung just off of her shoulders, leaving a respectable amount of bosom showing. There were amethysts sewn into the bodice, which fit her slender figure perfectly. The skirt was wide, but not too much. The best part was her heels. They made her look three inches taller and were covered in amethysts.

Faziah showed Torah around. They both were talking about boys, when Torah's favorite prince rounded the corner. He stopped to stare at Torah, and his face broke into a grin. Faziah left them, smiling. Torah rolled her eyes. She knew that Faziah would love it if Torah was to marry her brother. Torah knew that that would probably not happen. Zamar was supposed to marry for the good of Carthak.

Torah curtsied. She stood and held out her hand, which Zamar kissed. Torah smiled at him. "It has been too long, your highness." She said.

Zamar smiled back. "It has, milady. Would you do me the honors of accompanying me to the ball on Midwinter's Day tomorrow?"

Torah took his offered arm and smiled. "My prince, have you not found another lady to accompany you yet? Why would you turn to a poor girl like me?" Torah absolutely loved flirting!

Zamar smiled back. "You may be poor, milady, but you are the most beautiful of them all!" He spun Torah around to face him. Torah smiled. She felt a hot excitement race through her veins as their lips met.

He was the best kisser Torah knew. He was one of the main reasons that Torah returned to Carthak to visit. He was amazing. Their kiss lasted a long time. After a few minutes, and a couple breaks for air, they broke apart, each of them grinning at each other. Torah hugged him tightly, Court behavior forgotten.

"Gods, did I miss you and your kisses!" She whispered into his chest.

Zamar laughed and put an arm around Torah's waist. She rested her head contently on his shoulder. The two of them walked back to the room where their parents and siblings were.

When they entered the room, still hugging, everyone grinned. Emperor Kaddar put his hand on his son's free shoulder, smiling. Kally gave them each a hug. Kali laughed and hugged her half-sister.

Torah mock-sighed, eyes dancing. "You people are very rude, you know. We are just friends. No matter how much you want us to fall in love, we aren't going to. Right, Zamar?" Zamar kissed her on the lips again, and she dropped her act and kissed him back with the same fierceness.

When they broke apart, the noticed that everyone except for Nashi and Faziah had left the room. They two girls were both grinning and sitting on the floor. Torah scowled at them before turning back to Zamar.

"Zamar, would you know how to make your little brother Razan fall in love with our Nashi here?" She asked wickedly.

Zamar grinned. "Why would I need to? He's already in love with her. Imagine that! Our younger siblings are going to get married some day."

Nashi squealed. "Torah! I'm only nine! I'm not even going to consider getting married until I'm at least eighteen! I just can't wait to come to your wedding and crowning! Everyone knows that while you enjoy flirting with other men, you love Zamar. You will be Empress someday!"

Torah groaned. "You don't know that. I could die of a fever before my next birthday. Zamar could have to get married for the good of Carthak. We could get into a big fight and never want to see each other again!"

Nashi rolled her eyes. "Okay, I'll put it this way. If this were five years in the future, you would be engaged. Am I right?"

Torah and Zamar looked at each other and grinned. "Probably."

Nashi snorted as Faziah squealed. "Oh, I would love it if you two got married! We would be sisters, Torah! We would be the two most important ladies at Court!"

Torah laughed. "It isn't five years in the future though. Anything could happen. I don't know if I would like being empress."

Zamar, Faziah, and Nashi all snorted at that. "Yes you would!" They all said in unison. Torah frowned at them all.

"You guys know me too well. All right, it would be fun to be empress, but I would only be good at some areas, like the parties and balls. I would never be able to command a war."

"That's what Zamar's for." Faziah said bluntly. Zamar snorted.

"Thanks." He drawled.

There was a knock on the door. Kaddar entered. He turned to Zamar. "Zamar, you are needed in the throne room. Would you please come with me? Faziah, please show Lady Torah around." He left the room. Zamar shrugged and followed him.

The next day, Torah, Nashi, and Faziah were getting ready for the Midwinter ball. Faziah looked splendid in an orange sleeveless gown. It showed more of her bosom than would be acceptable in Tortall, but that was okay in Carthak. Her hair was pulled back into a tight bun. Nashi wore a pink gown. Even though she was only nine, she would be able to go to the children's ball. She looked as cute as she could.

Torah looked the best by far. Even though she was only fourteen, she looked beautiful. Her long hair fell to her waist in curls. The sleeves of her gown were just off of her shoulders. The neck was way lower than her Tortallan dresses. The dress was an indigo-violet which matched her eyes perfectly. Diamonds, amethysts, and sapphires were all sewn into the bodice. Purple eye paint was painted onto her eyelids. Her lips were painted red. She looked stunning.

The three of them put the finishing touches on their looks. There was a knock on the door. Faziah answered it. Two boys stepped into the room.

Zamar wore a bright blue shirt, tucked into black breeches. A white cloth was wrapped around his shoulders. He looked so handsome! His companion went straight to Faziah. Nashi slipped out of the room.

Zamar stared at every inch of Torah's body. She twirled around, showing off her dress. Finally she stopped and grinned up at him. "Am I pretty enough for you?" She asked. In answer, Zamar strode to her side and kissed her deeply.

Faziah wasn't pleased. "Stop it! Torah, you're going to mess up your face paint, and I'll have to do it again! You guys, listen-" She broke off. Torah stopped kissing Zamar to look at her friend and her companion kissing. She giggled and turned back to Zamar.

When their names were called, Torah and Zamar walked down the stairs. Torah flashed all of the men a flirty smile. She never got a break that night. She danced with all of the men in the room, even Kaddar, but she knew that he danced with her because she was family, not because he thought that she was beautiful. Torah mostly danced with Zamar. Finally, at the end of the ball, Zamar led Torah out onto a balcony and turned to her.

"When's the next time that you're coming back?" He asked.

"I think it'll be in two years. Why?" Torah smiled at him.

"I wanted to know when I'd be able to see you again. Goodbye, love." Torah was deeply kissed.

The next day, Torah was back on a ship to Tortall. She sighed. For once, she wished that she could scry like Rikash and Mel. She wanted to look at Zamar again. He was so handsome and his kisses were amazing! But was that a good reason to marry someone? They had been friends for a while, but after their first kiss a year back, they had moved from friends to 'lovers' entirely. They were no longer friends.

All the couples who Torah knew were friends too. Her parents had been friends since they were four and five. After ten years of that, they fell in love. The king and queen were friends. Dom and Kel were great friends. They had been friends for six long years. But while Zamar and Torah had known each other for a long time, were they still friends? Torah loved him. He wasn't just someone she liked to flirt with. She loved him. But did he love her?

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How was it? Please, please review! Thank you! I want to know who you want Torah to end up with! So far I only have one person who told me their input! Thanks! The next chapter will be up soon! I probably will type it today!


	6. Lightning Queen

Alright, please tell me who you think Torah should end up with! The choices are Zamar, Rikash, Jakkin, or Jassikam. Please, please send in a review and tell me! If you don't review, I will be very sad and not post another chapter! (Okay, I probably will because I love writing about Torah. She's really interesting!) If you don't review, I will cry and get very mad!

By the way, I really am Tamora Pierce. (If you actually think that I'm serious, then you have problems!)

Okay, here's the next chapter, The Lightning Queen! Fanfare!

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Torah gave Nashi one last hug. Nashi was already crying. Torah giggled and wiped a tear off of her cheek. "I'll see you again, silly. Be good." She kissed Nashi's forehead.

"I know! But it won't be for awhile! I look awful, don't I?"

Torah laughed. "Hurry up' you'll be late!"

Nashi would be riding back to the convent with some of her friends. Torah sighed and rested her head on her mother's shoulder. Torah giggled when a tear fell out of her eye. Her mother looked sown at her, and Torah burst into tears.

"Torah, what is it? You haven't cried since you were three!" Kali hugged Torah around the shoulders. "Would you like me to write to Numair and tell him that you'll be a day late?"

Torah shook her head. Kali sighed and stopped walking. She turned Torah around to face her. "This isn't about Nashi leaving, is it?" Torah shook her head. "Is it about you and Zamar?"

Torah nodded before submitting to her tears. "Ma, I-I think I love him. He's not like my other boys. I really love him. I don't just want to flirt with him, Ma. I love him. I gods damned love him, Ma!"

"So what's the problem?" Kali sounded amused. "Are you afraid of love?"

Torah shrugged. "Ma, it isn't love that I'm afraid of. If I were to stay in Carthak with him, I would be married to him the day I turn fifteen. Carthak needs an heir. What if something were to happen to Kally and Kaddar? What if something happened to me and Zamar?" Torah sighed and wiped away her tears. "I'm not ready to be married. Also, also I think that we moved from being friends to in love entirely. I don't see him as a friend anymore. Ma, am I not supposed to marry him? I'm not sure that I want to be an empress."

Kali sighed. "Torah, dear, I'm not sure. I know that you both love each other. I know that you would both want to get married now. Dear, would you both be happy in ten years? Would you still love each other then?"

Torah opened her mouth to say yes, but she closed it again. Zamar and she were so alike. They were both flirts, both had bad tempers, and were too proud. Were they too alike? "We're too alike, Ma. Would we still be able to work it out?"

Kali smiled. "I don't know. I think that you would certainly be happy for a little while. I married a man who was my best friend. He still is my best friend. That's probably the reason it worked out. We're so different. Sure we argue, but what couple doesn't?"

Torah sighed. She felt a few more tears running down her cheeks. "I don't know what to do, Ma. I hate being in love!" She burst into tears again. Kali sighed and hugged her daughter around the shoulders again.

"Come, we're nearly at the university. Let's go into your room and talk." Torah nodded and led her mother down the halls where the two of them could talk in private.

"Darling, I think that you need to slow down with your romances. You've kissed nearly all the men at Court on the cheek. I know that you've flirted with them all. You have kissed half of them on the lips once, some even more than once. Now you're talking about getting married. You're only fourteen."

Torah was still crying. "I know, Ma. It's just so fun. I need romance to keep me alive. It's all I have. Ma, I only have three friends here. One is my cousin, and one only likes me because of my powers. I only have Rikash here. I don't know why he likes me. My own brother won't talk to me, because he's embarrassed that I'm the Court flirt. Ma, I don't know what to do! Help me!" Torah threw herself onto her mother and began sobbing heavily.

Two figures burst into Torah's room. "Torah, we had heard that you were back! Why didn't you-" Torah looked up to see Mel looking panicked. Rikash was behind her looking shocked. Torah gave them a timid little smile and started to sob again, throwing herself onto Kali.

"Aunt Kali, what's wrong with her? Is she okay? She hasn't cried since she was nearly kidnapped when she was three!" Mel sat down on the bed. Kali sighed. She looked down at her daughter. Torah was asleep. Kali gently pushed Mel away from the bed. She laid Torah under the blankets.

"Well, you know how she was friends with Prince Zamar since she was like five? Well, lately they've been feeling more for each other. Poor Torah is a flirt. She has always felt in control of her life. She's not sure if it'll work out between her and Zamar. She hates the unknown. It made her cool, calm nature fall apart."

Mel sighed and touched her cousin's forehead. "I'll come around tomorrow and make sure she's okay." She kissed Kali on the cheek. "Goodnight!"

Mel took Rikash's hand and dragged him to her room. It seemed that Torah wasn't the only one who was upset. Rikash looked depressed. Mel didn't want to hurt him, but she had already hurt him once by not telling him that Torah would break his heart too.

"Rikash, you can't blame her. She doesn't even know that you like her. She doesn't know that you were worried about her every second she was gone. She didn't see your face when you walked into the room and saw her crying." Mel sighed and looked down. "It's all my fault. I didn't tell you that she breaks hearts. She can break a heart in a second. She doesn't realize it. She thinks it's fun. I should have told you that it was only a matter of time before she broke yours."

She looked up at him warily. He looked dejected. He looked Mel in the eye. "I know. I should have told her. But what am I supposed to do now? And what do you mean that she's broken a lot of hearts?"

Mel sighed. "Okay, this'll take a while. It's a pretty long story. Sit down." Mel moved over to her bed and sat down. Rikash walked over to the nearest chair and plopped down in it.

"Since we first met, Torah had been a beauty. It was she who got all the attention and was allowed to break rules with no punishment. She was allowed freedom that no one else was. Not from her parents of course, but from the king and queen, from her friends. You couldn't blame her for it. She was the nicest cousin I had. We were close friends since the time we met.

"When we got older, we both started taking an interest in boys. All the boys would swoon around her, though. None of them thought anything of me. I still couldn't blame her. She was so nice to me, and she stuck up to me when no one else did. However, since she was a favorite of some of the flirtiest ladies in the palace, she was kissing boys at age ten, maybe even earlier. She would flirt with them, get them to kiss her, and then ignore them when they talked to her the next day. There are only four boys that she hasn't done that with."

"Who?" Rikash asked.

"Prince Jassikam. They are friends, and he is her prince. There is also Jakkin. They are really good friends, and he is a great kisser, so I've been told. Then there's her friend Prince Zamar. He's a prince, they're friends, and she apparently loves him." Mel chewed on the end of one of her curls thoughtfully.

"That was only three!" Rikash said.

Mel nodded. "Yes, I know. The last one is you, Rikash. I don't know why she hasn't. It might just be because you two are friends; it may be more."

Rikash smiled a little. Mel sighed. "You can't blame her for being that way. She grew up with all of those flirts hanging around her. She grew up with whores. She has never matured past that."

"I don't blame her. I should tell her soon, then."

Mel smiled. "Yes. Night, Rikash."

"Goodnight, Mel."

The next day, Torah woke up early due to a fact that a strawberry was dropped on her head. She got up and yelled, "Toma!" The pink lightning dragon gave a laughing sound. Torah jumped as it said, "You sure get worked up about that!"

"You-you talked!"

"Yes." The lightning dragon sounded amused.

"But-but you're only lightning."

"Not anymore. I may be made out of lightning, but I'm in the shape of a dragon and living with humans. I'm no longer lightning. You should get up. There's a storm coming. I thought that you might want to learn some stuff about weather magic."

Torah stripped her nightgown off and put her blue robe on over it. The dragon thing was confusing her, but she was too tired to argue. They went up to the roof and watched the storm come in.

"Weather magic is very rare. If someone has it, it's usually only a small amount. You, Torah, have a large amount. I'm going to teach you what to do with all of it. We are going to fly and join the storm."

"I-I can't fly."

The dragon groaned. "Order the winds to pick you up! Come on; it isn't that hard! Command the winds!"

Torah raised her arms and called on the wind. Nothing happened. The dragon sighed again. "You need to command the winds! They aren't as gentle as the rain and not as nice as the lightning! Try again!"

Torah scowled at Toma. Her friend was a snob. She raised her arms to the sky and commanded the winds to pick her up. A second later, she was in the sky. Her mouth fell open. Toma laughed and followed Torah.

"Close that mouth of yours. Now, let's see. Let's go visit with my cousins. We can go visit the Thunder. Be careful, though. They may be invisible and harmless, but their strong voice could cause you to lose your concentration and knock you out of the sky. Command the thunder."

A moment later, there was a loud bang. A deep rumbling voice said, "You called, young cousin and Lighting Queen?"

Torah frowned. "Yes, we did, Why am I the Lightning Queen? I am only Torah."

The thunder laughed. "No, you are the Lightning Queen and the Promised One. You shall be the one who shall rule over the winds and us storms. You shall be our queen. You are the Lightning Queen."

Torah raised an eyebrow. "Okay…I guess so. Where should we go now, Toma?"

The pink lightning flew around. "Follow me. It's time to have some fun! We're going to fly around the storm!"

Torah flew over to her. The two off them met up with the rain. "Look, it's the Lightning Queen!" It said. The rain started poured harder. "We must show her our best."

After that, they went to visit the lightning. The lightning was the only part of the storm that Torah liked talking to. It didn't call her Lightning Queen. That was a really ridiculous name!

After a while, Torah checked where the sun was in the sky. "Oh no! Toma, we were supposed to be at breakfast a half hour ago! We have to get back! Come on! Good bye, Storm!"

"Goodbye, Lightning Queen!" Everything yelled. Torah and Toma flew straight into the breakfast hall, unaware that they were still soaked and flying. Everyone gasped and looked up at them. Torah lost her hold on the wind and she was dropped right in front of Numair. Torah winced and bowed. To her surprise, she heard laughter. She looked up slowly. Numair was laughing his head off.

"Novice Toralina, that was the funniest thing I've seen yet. Why don't you run to your rooms and change, as you are soaking wet? After that, you can come down here for a quick breakfast. Thom will be fine with you missing a little of his class. Go on."

Torah bowed and scurried out of the hall, muttering to her little lightning dragon, "You know that this is all your fault, right?"

"Of course." Toma said smoothly. Torah rolled her eyes and changed into another robe.

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Not my favorite chapter. I don't really like the Lightning Queen thing, but it's just my way of saying how powerful Torah is. I'll explain more next time.

PS. These are the robe colors:

Novice – blue

Intermediate – green

Adept – red

Master – white

Powerful Sorcerer – black


	7. Encounters with Mithros

Alright, please tell me who you think Torah should end up with! The choices are Zamar, Rikash, Jakkin, or Jassikam. Please, please send in a review and tell me! If you don't review, I will be very sad and not post another chapter! (Okay, I probably will because I love writing about Torah. She's really interesting!) If you don't review, I will cry and get very mad!

By the way, I really am Tamora Pierce. (If you actually think that I'm serious, then you have problems!)

Okay, here's the next chapter, The… Fanfare!

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When Torah walked into her first class, she was greeted by applause. She smiled slightly before bowing low to her uncle. Thom laughed and waved his arm towards a seat in the back row. Torah sat. She was pleased to see that she wasn't by Mel or Rikash. She didn't really want to explain why she had been crying last night.

A girl in the green robe for Intermediate sat in front of her. She spun around. Torah smiled at her. The girl was pretty. She had long blonde hair and blue eyes. She was tall and had ivory skin.

"Hi, I wanted to tell you how much I loved your entrance at breakfast this morning. It was splendid. Of course, we all know that it's the only way to get men to notice us girls. I think I'll do an entrance like that tomorrow. Want to sit by me at lunch? I'm Gemelle, by the way, Gemelle of Kennan."

Torah smiled back. "Torah of Conte and Olua. I guess I'll see you at lunch then."

Gemelle giggled and turned back around. Torah didn't pay attention in class. She was trying to figure out if she liked Gemelle or not. When Thom yelled her name, she jumped. She looked up at him, confused and embarrassed.

"Class is over, Torah. Are you okay?" Thom looked concerned. Torah nodded and sprinted out of the room to get to her next class.

At lunch, Gemelle pulled Torah up to the front of the lunch line. Torah was introduced to a pretty red robe named Felcia of Mae's Mountain and another green robe, Lalita of Hadar.

"Torah, dear, why don't we sit over here today? No one likes Melaniah, Rikash, or Gaviena. If you want to be popular like us, you have to act like it. You'll be able to get all the boys, dear. In fact, we were hoping that you would want some tips from us. Watch." She waved to a boy wearing a red robe. The boy raised an eyebrow and shook his head. Gemelle giggled and turned back to Torah. "You see, he was totally in to me. Now why don't you try?"

Torah raised an eyebrow of her own. She usually didn't brag, but Gemelle was really starting to bug her. "I bet you that I can go up to any boy here, flirt with them, and get them to kiss me."

Gemelle and Felcia laughed. Lalita looked interested. "Now, now, dear. Let's not get ahead of ourselves, right?" Gemelle said. "Well, go on and try, dear, but don't cry if he breaks your heart."

Torah grinned. "Name the guy."

Gemelle and Felcia looked at each other and started to giggle. Gemelle pointed to a tall, muscular man in a white robe of a Master. Torah smiled and got up. The man was only twenty, or so. That wasn't too old.

Torah sat down across from him. She could tell right away that this man was a flirt. She smiled and fluttered her eyelashes. "Hello, I'm Torah."

He smiled back. "I know. I liked your entrance this morning." Torah giggled. "My name is Amitz. It's nice to meet you."

They flirted for a couple more minutes. Finally Amitz reached across the table and kissed her. Torah kissed him back before breaking apart. "I'll talk to you later then. I have to get back to my 'friends'." Torah dashed back to her table. Gemelle looked shocked.

Torah turned to her and smirked. "Amitz is a really good kisser, you know, but he wasn't as good as Prince Jassikam or Prince Zamar of Carthak. I'll talk to you later." Torah put her tray of food away and ran to her room.

Mel entered her room without knocking. "What was that for? I thought you were in love with his highness Zamar."

Torah smiled sadly. "I'm going to miss flirting. Mel, I don't know what love is. I love Zamar as more than a friend. I can't figure out if I love him as a brother or as a husband. I'll tell you when I figure that out. Anyways, if I do, we aren't married and he isn't here. I just wanted to show Gemelle and her friends that they aren't as good as they think they are."

Mel laughed and hugged her. "Maybe there's love for you closer to home."

Torah snorted. "Zamar is he only boy who loves me. The rest just like flirting with me. Who do you think likes me closer to home?"

Mel shrugged. "That's for him to tell you. Come on; we'll be late for healing and then the Duke won't be happy. Let's go."

Finally, it was time for weather magic. Torah and Gavi were taught by Toma. Toma stayed by Gavi the whole time as Torah flew around the sky, talking to the clouds. They were boring. Torah wanted to talk with something more lively. She wanted to talk to the sun. She flew up to it and yelled out to it. There was a loud sound and Torah fell as something hard pounded into her. She fainted and fell out of the sky.

Torah woke to a loud yell in her ear. She throat felt raw, as if she had swallowed a flame. Her nose was bleeding, and her ears pounded. She sat up slowly and winced as Toma yelled at her again.

"You idiot! What were you thinking?! You tried to talk to one of the Great Gods! You can't do that! Now look at you! You're sitting in a Healer's room, bleeding to death! You're lucky that the Great Sun God decided to punish you instead of kill you! Can you even talk?!"

Torah shook her head. "Not really." She said. It came out as a croak. She winced and held her throat. Toma gave her some water which she gratefully drank. Toma hovered over her.

"I was so worried. My cousins and siblings would never forgive me if I let the lightning queen die. Also, I like you. You're nice and feed me pink stuff."

Torah couldn't help it. She burst out laughing. As soon as she did that, seven people raced into the room. Torah stopped laughing as Duke Baird, Thom, Numair, Mel, Rikash, Gavi, and to her surprise, Lalita of Hadar rushed to her side.

"Are you alright?" Duke Baird asked, concerned.

Torah nodded. "Apparently I attempted to talk to Mithros. It was an accident, and someone didn't tell me that I wasn't supposed to." She glared at Toma.

Toma snorted. "Maybe I thought that you would be smart enough not to try that. I forgot that you are a human, though. All humans are dumb." She sniffed and flew to the other side of the room. "You should have known better, Lightning Queen!" She called.

Mel was the first to speak. "Are you sure that you're okay?" Torah nodded.

Numair looked awed. "Since when can she talk? Isn't she a bolt of lightning?"

"I heard that! Yes, I can talk now!" Toma called.

"Why'd she call you lightning queen?" Gavi asked. Torah shrugged. Rikash and Lalita looked very worried. Thom looked at the little lightning dragon, which was ignoring Numair. Torah giggled. "Toma, stop teasing him! He's old! No offense, Uncle Numair!"

Numair laughed. Thom looked at Torah with a raised eyebrow. "Toma?" He asked.

Torah giggled again. "Yes. Toma is named after you, sir!"

Baird gave Torah a nasty thing to drink for her throat. She gulped it down, wincing as it burned her throat. The three men left, leaving Torah with her friends and Lalita of Hadar.

Torah raised an eyebrow at Lalita. She blushed. "I'm tired of Gemelle and Felcia. The only reason I sit with them is because Gem's my second cousin and I have nowhere else to sit. I want to be friends with you."

Torah grinned. "Of course. You should sit with us from now on. When am I allowed to get up?"

"Tomorrow." Rikash said. He was staring at Torah weirdly. She glared and turned to Mel. Mel shook her head.

"I am getting up right now! Since when do I follow rules?"

"I wouldn't advise it." Toma said from across the room."

Torah stuck her tongue out. She slowly stood up and held on to the bed post. "And why not?" She asked as she let go of the bed.

"That's why." The dragon said as Torah fell. Rikash and Gavi were closest to her. They caught her and helped her back into her bed. Gavi frowned.

"Don't, Torah. Listen for once." She said anxiously.  
Torah sighed loudly. "Fine. What am I allowed to do now?" Lalita and Mel put a stack of paper on the nightstand. Torah rolled her eyes at her homework. "Maybe I should just tell them that I don't feel well enough to do homework."

Rikash grinned. "If you said that, then you'd be stuck in here forever."

Torah sighed loudly. "I know!"

The next day, Torah ran out of the Healer's room. She was so glad to be gone! She hated that place! Every time a Healer saw her, they would raise their eyebrows and shake their heads. Torah was glad to be out.

She returned to her rooms and got dressed in a simple light green kimono. She put a cinnamon one over it and fixed a forest green obi over it. She put a fan in her obi. Torah wasn't allowed to go to classes for a couple of days. She was glad that her four friends were allowed off to keep her company.

She answered the knock on her door. Gavi entered. She also wore a dress, but it was pale orange. Any lighter, and it could have been white. She wore a bright orange obi over it. Torah grinned at her and stepped aside. Toma flew over to rest on Torah's head. Torah sighed.

Mel and Rikash entered a few minutes later. They both wore plain breeches and tunics. The last person to enter was Lalita. She wore a beautiful, simple, blue morning gown. Torah smiled and hugged the girl around the shoulders.

"You look nice, Lalita."

She grinned. "Thanks. I don't look as pretty as you, though. And, please, my friends call me Lila."

Torah grinned. "Then so will I."

Later that night, Rikash sat on his bed thinking. There was a knock on his door. He opened it, thinking it was Mel. It was Torah who stood there. She looked beautiful even in her tousled nightgown. She grinned and handed him a book.

"You left this in my room earlier. I just found it." She turned to go. "Oh by the way, I wanted to thank you. It was so nice of you guys to come and spend time with me so I wasn't bored. Thanks."

Before Rikash could say anything, she kissed his cheek. "Goodnight!" She called over her shoulder as she walked away. Rikash could do nothing more than stand there, his hand over the spot where she had kissed him.

Torah walked back to her rooms. What was with Rikash lately? He wouldn't even talk to her. She shrugged. Maybe he was just tired or sick. She walked to her rooms. She didn't know why she had kissed him.

But, it wasn't like the kisses she had given to Zamar. But still. She hadn't kissed her prince until years after she met him. Was it possible that Torah had fallen in love again? No, it couldn't be! She gave a little chuckle and went into her rooms.

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There! I added a little bit of fluff at the end! I think I'm falling in love with Rikash! I even added some more robe colors! Yay! Well, what did you think??? Please review. Tell me who you think Torah should end up with! Thank you a lot! Next chapter will be up in a little bit. Today or tomorrow I think. It depends on how many reviews I get!

PS. These are the robe colors:

Novice – blue

Intermediate – green

Adept – red

Master – white

Powerful Sorcerer – black


	8. The Unwanted Letter

The three R's! Read, Review, and Rejoice! Okay, maybe just the first two! Oh well, just have fun!

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Torah lay on her bed. Mel sat beside her, humming slightly while she read a book. Lila sat on another chair. She too was reading. Torah was trying to finish some homework that she had from yesterday. There was a knock on her door. "Come in!" She yelled, still absorbed in her homework. Rikash and Gavi entered. Rikash handed Torah a letter. Torah ignored it, still trying to finish her homework.

"It was outside of your door. Here's another one." Gavi said, setting another folded letter on her bed. Torah sighed and looked up from her homework. She opened the first letter. She gasped. Her friends all looked at her in worry, but she was too busy looking at the letter.

_Dear Torah, _

_I know that you're probably surprised that I'm writing. I need your help though. I am sorry that I haven't talked to you in a while. Could you please meet me at the palace soon? I am really sorry. I was just mad. I didn't mean all those things that I said._

_Thomath_

Torah stared at the letter in surprise. Her twelve year old brother hadn't been talking to anyone in his family for three years now. The last time Torah had seen him, he had been begging for her help, but she had refused. Why would he be writing now?

Torah looked up at Mel's face. Mel looked worried. Torah scowled back down at the letter and threw it to Mel. "That little bastard!" She yelled. She kicked her bed and stalked out of the room. Mel read the letter out loud. She gasped when she saw who had been writing the letter. Rikash took it from her.

"Who's Thomath?" He asked.

Mel looked at him. She looked worried. "Thomath is her twelve year old brother. They haven't been talking for three years. It must be serious if he's writing. We need to convince Torah to help him."

Rikash looked at Gavi who was still contemplating the idea of going after Torah. She looked up and sighed. "Why aren't they talking?" She said.

Mel looked down at her lap. For a second, Rikash thought that she wasn't going to tell them, but she sighed and looked at Lila. "Her brother wanted to go across the Emerald Sea with his friend. His parents wouldn't let him. He called Aunt Kali a whore and Uncle Liam a-a, well, a bad name that caused Torah to nearly go insane. She wasn't happy at all. She and Thomath nearly burnt the house down. They were having a fist fight that turned into a magic fight. It wasn't good at all. Finally, Torah managed to get him out of the house. She vowed never to talk to him again."

Rikash looked down at the letter in his hand. "Mel, you should go and convince her that Thomath needs her."

Mel shook her head. "Not me."

Gavi smiled. "Nor I."

Lila looked at Rikash. "You should go. She's known you longer than us."

"She's known Mel for way longer than me!"

Mel groaned. "She won't listen to anyone who's family. Everyone in her family except for Kali hates him. I know that my dad would blast him if he came here. The only reason I'm sticking up for him, is because we used to be best friends. I'm supposed to hate him as well. Go, Rikash."

Rikash left the room. He knew where she was. Torah would be up on the roof with Toma. Rikash took a left down the hallway and walked to the roof. Sure enough, Torah was sitting on the roof, arms wrapped around her legs, staring into the distance. Her long hair blew around her face. Rikash sat beside her.

"What do you want?" Torah asked. She turned to face him. A faint red blush appeared on her cheeks. It was the first time Rikash had seen her blush. "Oh, I thought you were Mel coming to tell me that I need to see what my stupid ex-brother wants."

"Ex-brother?" Rikash asked.

"I assume Mel told you what happened." He nodded. Torah stared back out into the distance. "If you actually thought that I still call him my brother…" She shook her head. "Well, I don't. I don't care what he wants. I'd like to see him get hurt."

Rikash stared at Torah. Sure, her brother had been bad, but that was just cruel. He was about to leave, until he saw her tears. He hesitantly put an arm around Torah's shoulders. She turned to him and shook her head. "I loved him!" She threw herself into Rikash's arms and sobbed into his shirt. Rikash couldn't help but be happy. It felt so right for him to be holding her. He stroked her long hair.

After a few minutes, Torah sat up. "I need to help him, don't I?"

Rikash nodded. "Maybe you'll be able to start talking again. He wouldn't have written to you if he didn't love you and need your help. Come on." She didn't move. "Torah?"

Rikash held out his hand. Torah sighed and took it. He pulled her to her feet. She didn't let go off his hand. She smiled at him. "Thank you, Rikash. You're always there for me when I need you." She let go off his hand and walked past him. "I need to tell Numair that I'm going to help my brother. Would you like to come? It would mean a lot to me."

"Of course I'm coming." Rikash said. He followed Torah into the building.

Numair let them leave. Torah, Rikash, Mel, Gavi, and Lila left right away. Torah commanded the winds to pick her up. She grabbed onto Rikash and Lila's hands. Soon the five of them were flying.

They arrived at the palace in five minutes. Torah rushed up to where her brother's rooms where. She threw herself onto the door. It opened. She looked around the room for some clue to where her brother might be. There was a note on her desk.

Torah,

Tired am I! Hope your okay, I am! By a man, has your heart been captured? Don't be mad at that, please! With math, I need help! Don't make that face at me!

Your brother Thomath

Torah raised an eyebrow at the note. She passed it to Rikash who read it out loud. "This doesn't make sense." Gavi complained. Torah didn't answer. Her brother had always liked spying and secret codes. Torah looked back at the note that Lila now held.

"Give me the letter." Torah said. Lila gave it to her. Torah searched it for secret clues. She searched the writing, the back of it, and it finally hit her. She gave it back to Rikash. "Read the last word in every sentence out loud.

"I…am…captured! Please…help…me! It's a secret code!" He looked up at Torah's nodding face. She took the letter back and burned it with her Gift. "Where are wee going to start looking?" Rikash asked.

Torah sighed wearily. "We're giving up. I don't know where to start. Let's go back to the university." She glared at Mel. Mel followed her gaze and nodded. She took Rikash and Lila's arms. Torah grabbed Gavi and pulled her out of the room. Torah looked around and sighed her relief.

"We can't just give up! He's your brother!" Rikash yelled.

"Stop it! We are giving up! We don't know where to look! I don't even know why I came here! He isn't my brother! I gave up on him long ago!"

Rikash tried to pull away from Mel, but both cousins grabbed him. "No, Rikash. We are leaving." Both cousins managed to pull him away from the door. Once they were back in the hall, Torah let go of him. Mel did too. The cousins gestured for the others to follow them. They reluctantly did.

Torah made her way to Liano's rooms. She knocked. Liano opened the door. "Everyone get inside. I'm going to go and get my friends. We need all the help we can get. Mel, don't say a word yet."

After Torah entered the room with Ani, Jakkin, Prince Jassikam, and Lani, she took a seat. She nodded to Mel wearily. Mel sat down. Torah started to talk to her old friends. "My brother sent me a letter today."

Jakkin interrupted right away. "Your two year old brother Mylon sent you a letter. That's very sweet, but may I go to sleep now?"

Torah sent him a glare. "Not him. Thomath did." Jakkin, Ani, and Jassikam all gasped. Torah nodded wearily. "It was simple. He begged me to come to the palace. I did and searched his rooms. He wasn't here, but he left a code note, saying how he had been captured and needed my help."

Lila scowled. "And she refused, saying that she didn't know where to start!"

Mel gave a halfhearted laugh. "Don't be stupid, guys. Do you honestly think that our Torah would give up without a fight?"

Torah rolled her eyes at Mel. "There were listening spells on the room. We needed to make it sound like we weren't coming. Anyways, will you guys help me?"

"Father and Mother will be mad, but I'm in!" Jassikam stood up and grinned. Liano looked surprised as she also stood.

"For once, Jasson has said the right thing!" She said as she put an arm around her brother.

Ani and Jakkin stood at the same time. "We're in." They said in unison.

Lani nodded. "As am I."

"Let's go. I think that we could use a focus to get to him." Torah nodded to herself.

"But we can't go into his room!" Lila said.

Torah smiled sadly. She put her left leg on the table. She waved her hands and a little pouch appeared. She reached into it and pulled a little painting of a little boy around eight out of it. "We could use this."

"Still, I'm a red robe, and we haven't learned how to use a focus yet! Master Numair says that it's really advanced magic! It completely drains you!" Gavi said.

Torah frowned for a moment. "I'm going to try it, nut it would do no good if we got there completely drained. I think I know what to do though. If we put the power of the spell into the winds, and they take us there, then we wouldn't be drained!"

Mel squealed. "You're a genius!"

Torah smiled. "Let's go."

They walked outside to where a storm was waiting to strike. Torah called to it. The winds picked only her up. She gave the picture of her brother to the winds. It blew it around for a little while.

"We have seen this boy, Lightning Queen. Please follow us, Queen of Lightning." The wind's voice said. Torah bowed, an odd feat for someone flying, and turned to her friends. Ani and Lani were gone.

"They went to get blankets and clothing." Jakkin explained. Torah raised her eyebrows and nodded. "Are we going to follow the wind then?" Jakkin asked.

Torah nodded. "Yes, we are."

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Hope you liked it! Remember to review! Yay! I still want to know who you want Torah to end up with. Right now the 'score' is Jakkin – 0, Jassikam – 0, Zamar – 1, and Rikash – 3. There is still time to vote. I know that I got a little of track, but this is my way of showing how powerful Torah is. Isn't Thomath a little ?


	9. The Queen's Battle

Alright, please tell me who you think Torah should end up with! The choices are Zamar, Rikash, Jakkin, or Jassikam. Please, please send in a review and tell me! If you don't review, I will be very sad and not post another chapter! (Okay, I probably will because I love writing about Torah. She's really interesting!) If you don't review, I will cry and get very mad!

By the way, I really am Tamora Pierce. (If you actually think that I'm serious, then you have problems!)

Okay, here's the next chapter! Fanfare!

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They had been following the wind for two days before the wind stopped. Torah asked it why. _We are here. The human is in that wind-shelter. We have led you to him. _

"Thank you." Torah whispered. "I shall remember this when I am the Lightning Queen someday, when I actually learn what that is!"

Toma had heard. "Stop it, Queen. You are always the Queen and always have been. Are you really going to make the lightning your advisors?"

Torah shrugged. "Sure." Toma gave a sharp whistle. Torah frowned at her. "Be quiet, Toma. You're going to get us caught."

"Of course, your majesty!" The dragon said wickedly. "I was only trying to tell you that I thought that it was a good move on your part to make the lightning your advisors."

Torah raised an eyebrow at him. "Yeah, of course you'd say that. You are lightning!"

Toma sighed. "I'm not lightning anymore. I am now the Queen's Companion. When a part of a storm breaks away to take a more 'human' form, we become companions to our human. I am the Queen's Companion. I am a lightning dragon, not a bolt of lightning. Do you understand?"

Torah shook her head to clear it. "How about you lecture me after we save my brother? I want to know that he's safe. Mel, have our scouts arrived yet?"

Mel took a mirror from her pocket. They had sent Lani and Jakkin, the two swiftest riders, ahead in advance. They would attack after they were back. Mel looked into her scrying mirror and nodded. "They'll be here in another ten minutes, I think. They say that there aren't any men outside or surrounding the building."

Rikash came to stand behind Torah. She smiled at him and looked back out to where her brother was being held. Lila came to stand at her other side and put an arm around Torah's shoulders.

Ten minutes later, Lani and Jakkin returned. Torah ran up to them. Jakkin nodded to her and began preparing the weapons that the squires would use. Lani went over to tell the others the news.

"There are hardly any men, but the one's who are there are all powerful mages or very good knights. I don't know who they are. We couldn't get close enough for a good look."

Torah nodded absently. She strode over to where Jakkin stood with Ani, both reading the weapons. "Jakkin, around how many men where there."

He looked up at her and grinned. "Twenty, your majesty of lightning."

Torah scowled at him. "Now is not the time to be fooling around." Despite herself, a smile played at her lips. Jakkin grinned back and continued sharpening his sword and dagger.

Ani handed Torah six daggers. Torah thanked her and put one in her obi, two in her sleeves, one on a cord, hanging from her neck, and one in her boot. Her aunt Alianne had taught her how to use daggers. They were quite useful, even for a mage.

After they were all armed up, Torah nodded to Ani and the princess. Both of them held swords. Torah smiled at Toma who was beside her. "Lead us, Companion." She said queenly.

Toma gave a bow and took off through the air. Torah and the others ran after her. They reached the small building in no time at all. Torah called on her magic to open the door. The magic locking it gave way without a problem.

It took Torah's eyes a second to get used to the darker lighting. She squinted and was able to make out a small figure tied to a chair in the corner. A man stood over him, whip in one hand, knife in the other. Torah called out. The man looked up and grinned.

"We got company, boys." Ten other people came into the room. The man walked closer to the mages and squires, still grinning. "I had hoped you were coming, Toralina. I won't lie; you certainly had us fooled."

Any of Torah's friends would have called her proud. She was. She held herself up haughtily and glanced coldly at the man. "You underestimate me, then. If you thought that I couldn't sense a mere listening spell, then you're dead. You should surrender."

The man laughed. "Try to blast me then." Before Torah could move, Mel gasped and collapsed to the ground. Torah didn't move. She signaled for Gavi to take care of her. Once she was positive that Mel was fine, she panicked.

What could they do? Magic was the one thing that they had been counting on. Well, there was nothing else to do, but fight their way out of this with weapons. Torah gave the signal to Ani. Ani held up her hand. She dropped it and they all charged.

Torah went straight for the man. He was just as good as she was. She managed to cut him several times. She realized that he was using magic.

"You cheater!" Torah glared up at him. He was tem inches taller than her. He laughed back down at her.

"Do you think that I would really let you go again? I captured your little fool of a brother, hoping that you would come and save him! You're too noble, my dear. Once we're married and you have taken a blood oath not to use your magic against me, I will let you sit embroidering in our room. You won't have time to be noble."

Torah yelped as an invisible force threw her back against the stone wall. She winced as her head smacked into it. Blood poured out of her mouth. Torah stood back up and threw a dagger at him. He defended himself. Torah was given time to look around her.

Gavi, Ani, Lani, and the prince were the only one's still fighting. Torah knew that they would tire soon. The rest of Torah's group lay on the ground, bleeding to death. Torah walked daintily to where her attacker stood. She slapped him hard and was thrown back again. This time, the wind gathered her into its arms. She was set back down harmlessly.

Torah smiled at the man. "Who are you anyways?"

The man smirked. "My name is Lucion Balagre. We have met in Carthak. I asked you to dance at Midwinter two years ago. You flirted with me and kissed me. You said that you liked me. I saw you the next day. I was going to yell out to you, but I saw our young crown prince taking you into his arms. You broke my heart." He was still smirking.

Torah stood to her full height. She heard a gasp as Lani fell. It was now or never. She glared at the man coldly. "I found out that you had had four wives. You killed each of them when they failed to produce you heirs. The last one was sixteen and pregnant. I refuse to marry you. You have once again underestimated me."

Lucion laughed. It was a heartless, high-pitched, less-than-human laugh. Torah laughed back at him. She loved making people feel nervous. She summoned the winds and the lightning to her. She sent a strong wind at Lucion. He glanced around, frowning slightly.

Torah smiled as Toma landed on her shoulder. "I am the Lightning Queen, the Promised One. I am Toralina of Conte and Olua. I am the mage of weather. You don't deserve to live any longer, Lucion. You have killed too many. My lightning friends?"

The lightning crept closer to him. He gasped. "That's impossible!" He screamed. Torah turned away seconds before the lightning burned him. The rest of his men were bound in lightning ropes. Torah wiped a tear off of her cheek and went to the figure tied to the chair.

Thomath had become unbound by the lightning. He pushed his dark curls out of his eyes. He looked down at his shoes when he saw Torah's intense stare. Torah only hesitated for a second before running towards him and wrapping her arms around him tight. Only then did her tears fall.

The two siblings stood there hugging each other until Ani called out, "Torah, this is all very sweet and all, but seeing as you're the only Healer conscious, I think that you should help the others. Thom, come here."

They both obeyed. Torah fixed Lila, Gavi, and Jakkin quickly. She laid them down outside. All of the clouds volunteered to provide as blankets for them. Torah picked three fluffy clouds from the sky, and they settled down as blankets and pillows. The wind brought Ani and the prince food. Torah turned to Lani.

Soon enough, she felt herself getting tired. Luckily, she only had her brother and Rikash left to do. Lila and Jakkin had both woken up and, to Torah's amusement, were flirting. She rolled her eyes at Ani. Ani followed her gaze and groaned, causing Torah to laugh out loud.

She was soon quiet, however. She had just finished looking at the extent of his injuries. They were bad. Torah refused to let her tears fall, though. She rushed back to where Lila and Gavi were.

"I need your help! Rikash is really bad!" Lila and Gavi jumped up immediately and rushed to where he stood. "I know you're tired, but could you at least try to pour some of your strength into him?"

They had no success. Torah glared up at the sky, begging the wind to help him. It sadly responded that it was unable to. Torah cursed herself for being so stupid. Finally, Mel came up to Torah, clutching a cloud blanket around her and smiling sadly.

"Torah, I know you can do it. You two love each other. I see the way you look at him when you think that no one's looking. He's told me of his feeling for you. Torah, I know that you won't let him die."

Torah watched her as she left the room. Suddenly, Torah knew that she wasn't going to let him die. She called on the last burst of magic from herself and gave it to him. She saw him move. Torah grinned to herself before fainting.

She woke up to Toma's shouting. "Do you know how stupid that was?! You tapped your own life source, you idiot! What would have happened if the Lightning Queen had died?! You shouldn't have tried it!"

Torah grinned at Toma. "Oh stop it. What kind of queen would I be if I saved myself instead of my subjects?"

Toma groaned. "I hate it when you make sense." Torah giggled and suddenly remembered what she wanted to ask.

"Why are even the clouds serving me now? And is Rikash okay?"

"The clouds are just big arses that needed proof that you were the Promised One. They need everything shoved in front of their noses. That boy hasn't woken up yet, but he'll be fine. Hey, where do you think you're going? He doesn't need you hovering over him, and you need to rest!" Toma said as Torah bolted out of her clouds and rushed to Rikash's side.

"Are you sure that he's all right?" Torah asked. She was given a sharp blow on the head. "Ouch! Okay, I know! Stupid question! How's everyone else?"

"Fine, fine. Why don't you greet your arse of a brother?" It was Torah's turn to whack the dragon's head. "What was that for?"

"You know." Torah smiled impishly. She walked across the clearing to where Ani and the others had been playing with three small bolts of lightning. Torah heard some thunder and rain there too.

Torah walked up to them. The lightning and rain bowed immediately. The clouds followed suit. The thunder made a loud sound. Even Torah's friends were kneeling. Torah smiled at them.

"Don't kneel before me, my friends. I have only come to greet you. A very smart, annoying, sarcastic advisor of mine told me that it would be wise to come and talk to you. Thomath, I would be delighted if you would join me on a walk right now." She stalked off with her nose in the air.

Thom looked at Mel, clearly scared. She smiled back. "Don't worry. She wouldn't save you from those men just to have you killed."

Thom smiled a little. "I wouldn't put it past her. She didn't even smile at me!"

Mel giggled. "She's in one of her imperious moods. She's a queen, and Rikash and I think that she may even be a Great God someday. The Lightning Queen is very rare, and a powerful one is even rarer yet. She is very, very powerful. Go on; you don't want to keep the queen waiting!"

Thomath nodded and scurried off to where his sister stood. She glanced at him before turning to walk along the wildflowers. Thom scurried to catch up to her as she bent down to smell a rose. He bowed.

She glanced at him in surprise. To Thom's surprise, she laughed. It was a real laugh, one that Thom hadn't heard for three years. She motioned for him to stand up. She shook her head and smiled. For the first time, Torah seemed to drop her Queen Toralina of the Lightning act. She was her normal self again.

"Thomath, I missed you all those months. When I got that letter, I thought that someone was joking around with me. I take it you weren't."

Thom smiled. "I wrote you a lot of letters. I never sent any of them. I thought that you might get angry. I'll never forget that day that you threw me out of the house. That was a little scary. You looked like–like– like lightning! I guess that you being the queen of lightning makes sense!"

Torah laughed. Suddenly, a little pink dragon (_imagine Mushu from Mulan, but pink!)_ flew out and landed on top of Torah's head. She sighed.

"I'll talk to you later, Thom. I'm really glad that you're okay!" She hugged him and rushed away.

Thom looked after her, a small smile on his face. It widened and he rn back to where Mel and her friends where.

Torah rushed down to where a lightning bolt was fighting with a cloud. She cleared her throat and they stopped immediately. They gave excuses. Torah listened to them like a proper queen was supposed to, before sending them away. She heard a chuckle behind her. She spun around. Rikash stood there.

He smiled at her. She ran into his arms and hugged him tight. Before he could say anything, she kissed him. She laughed at Rikash's surprised expression, but it was cut short by another kiss.

After a couple minutes of this, they broke apart. Torah scowled at him. "You're supposed to be resting!" She said loudly.

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This has got to be my favorite chapter so far! I think it's one of my longest too. Sorry if the battle scene was crap! I suck at writing them! Yes, Torah is with Rikash for now. It could change, but it would take a lot of convincing because I'm in love with him! Review please!


	10. The Agreement

Right now Torah is with Rikash, thanks to a lot of his fans! (cough) SOPROL! (cough) You are welcome to try and convince me otherwise, but I am in love with him so I doubt if it will happen. Please, please send in a review! If you don't review, I will be very sad and not post another chapter! (Okay, I probably will because I love writing about Torah. She's really interesting!) If you don't review, I will cry and get very mad!

By the way, I really am Tamora Pierce. (If you actually think that I'm serious, then you have problems!)

Okay, here's the next chapter! Fanfare!

Oh, before I forget, there was some confusion about the last chapter. When Lucion said that it was impossible for Torah to be able to use her powers, here's why!

Lucion is stupid and arrogant!

He thinks that if he can't control the winds, (believe me; he's tried!) then no one can!

He thought that he had put a ward against that! (he forgot!)

Torah is a very powerful weather mage! That is very rare! As you know, Gavi can only control small bolts of lightning and rain. Torah controls the wind and thunder and even the dumb clouds!

Before Torah, only goddesses got the title of Lightning Queen. As far as Lucion knows, Torah is completely mortal! (oh no! could this be a clue to the next chapter!!) Hint! Hint!

Okay, NOW you can read! Enjoy…and REVIEW or the evil monster who gets people who don't review will get you! That was really random! I think I've had too much sugar today! Okay, everyone who thinks I should just shut up, raise your hands! Okay, I have been outvoted. No, I'm not crying! Just read! (break into sobs)

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Last time:

Torah rushed down to where a lightning bolt was fighting with a cloud. She cleared her throat and they stopped immediately. They gave excuses. Torah listened to them like a proper queen was supposed to, before sending them away. She heard a chuckle behind her. She spun around. Rikash stood there.

He smiled at her. She ran into his arms and hugged him tight. Before he could say anything, she kissed him. She laughed at Rikash's surprised expression, but it was cut short by another kiss.

After a couple minutes of this, they broke apart. Torah scowled at him. "You're supposed to be resting!" She said loudly.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Rikash blushed a bright red. "Does this mean-" He shook his head. "You must be sick. You already have that emperor to love. You lost too much blood."

Torah scowled back at him. "Stop it. I'm not stupid, you know. I know who I love, and I'm hoping that he loves me back. Well, do you?" She demanded after Rikash just stared at her.

He nodded. "Of course I do. You know that!" He sighed. Before he opened his mouth to talk again, Torah kissed him on the lips. Torah found out that he was the best kisser she had ever kissed. Maybe any girl would think that, or maybe she was just madly in love. Either way, she was enjoying herself.

Torah had kissed half the Court and all of the boys her age. Because of this, she didn't act like a maiden in love when she was kissed. She did now. Her knees grew weak, her stomach fluttered, and her heart pounded, as if trying to get out of her chest. Torah cursed herself for acting like that.

Torah remembered that Rikash was supposed to be resting. She broke the kiss to glare at him. He looked back, confused. "I thought I told you to go rest! I'll never forgive you if you die on me!"

Rikash grinned and went to go rest. Torah sighed and sat down, watching him go back into the cloud blankets. She wished she could crawl into those clouds with him. Torah bolted up, bumping her head in the process. She had always thought about kissing, but it had never gone beyond there, not even with Zamar! Was she going crazy? She shook her head to clear those disturbing, yet warm thoughts.

There was a little laugh behind her. Torah spun around and sighed in relief when she saw only Mel. Mel sat beside Torah, pulling her down as well. They turned to watch the moon rise. It was nearly noon, but the moon had already risen.

"I think someone's in love." Mel said dreamily. She winked at her friend. Torah bolted up again, nearly banging her head once again. She winced as the branch nearly killed her.

"I am not!" Torah replied, although her smile gave her away. She sighed dramatically as her cousin gave her an evil grin. "Fine. I admit it. The Court flirt is in love. Toralina the Heartbreaker has fallen in love."

Mel rolled her eyes. "I can tell. You're never this dramatic usually. And you've never called yourself that ridiculous name that the palace has for you!"

Torah scowled. "If it's so ridiculous, then why do you insist on calling me it?"

Mel grinned. "What's family for?"

Torah snorted loudly. Mel rolled her eyes. "You should go and get some rest. Maybe Rikash would give you the comfort that you needed."

Torah stood up again, this time hitting her head hard on the branch. Mel gave a tiny giggle. Torah scowled and Mel submitted to tears of laughter. "I know what you're suggesting, and I refuse. It wouldn't be proper."

Mel continued to giggle. "That's not what I meant at all. I just meant that you should go lay down together. I've heard that people you love give you comfort."

Torah scowled. "Thanks, but I think I'll check up on-" Torah's eyes widened as they fell upon Lila and Jakkin, both kissing fiercely. Mel followed her gaze and snorted loudly.

"They've been at it all morning. Someone should tell them to knock it off. That's getting her majesty very distracted." Mel stood up and winked as Torah scowled at her.

Torah grumbled to herself. She stood up and waved to a cloud. It came down immediately bended in half, a cloud bow. Torah smiled and nodded to it. "Could you lift me up, please? I want to go up there!" She pointed to the sky. The cloud floated to the ground. Torah climbed on and nodded. The cloud floated up to the heavens. Torah grinned. It was so relaxing, much more so than the wind. Even though she loved the wind, it always tired her out. The cloud was different.

In fact, Torah was so relaxed that she fell asleep. When she woke up, it was hours later and, they were still floating in the sky. Torah yawned and hugged the cloud. "You can put me down now." She said.

Once she was back on the ground, Torah checked up on her friends. Rikash greeted her warmly by kissing her in front of everyone else. Everyone giggled, and Jakkin whistled loudly. Lila punched him hard. "Stop it. I think it's sweet."

Jakkin grinned and pulled Lila closer to him. "Anything for you, my love." He said before kissing her. Torah rolled her eyes at the two of them.

"You are so like your father, Jakkin!" She yelled. He didn't listen or hear her. The kiss didn't break. Torah groaned and turned to Liano and Jassikam. "When would you like to head back?" She asked.

Jassikam was leaning against a tree. He raised an eyebrow at his sister. "Never." He said. "I like being out here. There are no princely duties, and I actually feel useful!" Liano nodded her agreement.

Torah fixed them her biggest scowl. "You have to go back sometime! Liano's the crown princess, and you're the oldest prince, Jas! I'm sending you home on a cloud. I'll be back for the rest of you later! Come on!" Torah grabbed Jassikam by the elbow and dragged him to her cloud. Liano followed grudgingly.

"At least Grandpa Jon and Grandma Thayet actually fought in the wars. Father won't let us." Liano grumbled. Torah shook her head and pulled her onto the cloud. She clambered on after them and the cloud took off.

At the palace, King Roald and Queen Shinkokami came running out to meet their oldest children. The younger princesses, Tomokami and Kalakami trailed behind their parents. Tomo was holding her four year old brother Jon.

Shinko kissed Liano on both cheeks. Liano did the same. Roald pulled Liano into a tight hug. Jassikam had slipped away to talk to his other siblings. He groaned when his mother swept him into a hug. He returned her hug, making a face over her shoulder.

"Where have you been, Lianokami?" Roald asked. His face was set in a frown. Liano gave a Yamani bow and nodded to her brother. Torah couldn't help but admire the expressionless Mask she had on.

"A page had been captured, Father. He was Torah's brother. A group of Torah's friends went to rescue him. Prince Jassikam and I couldn't bear to stay behind and let others fight our battles, so we snuck along." Liano said, face still expressionless.

Shinko sighed. "You could have been killed, Liano. You could have got your brother killed. What were you thinking?"

Now Liano was angry. Though she didn't drop her Mask, Torah knew her well enough to see her anger through it. Her parents could too.

"What was I thinking?" Liano repeated coolly. "I was thinking the right thing, Mother. A good ruler doesn't sit around and let her people do all the work. If I had to do that over again, I would do nothing differently." Torah nearly shook her head. Liano's voice hadn't even trembled in the slightest.

Roald looked at his wife. Suddenly, the thing that Torah least expected happened. Liano was swept into a big hug by her suddenly beaming parents. Shinko beamed at her husband.

"Well, she has passed the test, Roald. She will be a good ruler when she is older. Liano, we give you a choice now. You have come of age. We would like to know if you would want to be Queen of Tortall, or if you would want to be a princess and let Jassikam have the title."

Liano blinked. She looked back at Torah, who beamed encouragingly. Liano turned back to her parents and beamed. "I will be Queen of Tortall someday." She said smoothly.

Torah winked and clambered back onto her cloud. She waved to the queen and king and went back to get the others.

A week later, Torah found an unopened letter on her bed. She glanced at the seal and trembled. It was the royal seal of Carthak. It would have to be from Zamar. Her fingers trembled as she opened it.

_Dearest Torah, _

_How are you doing? I am well, even if I am bored. Being a prince is boring! Oh, before I forget, Faziah wants me to tell you that she says hi! _

_I have the best of news. I was talking to my father the other day and he said that it would be a fine thing to renew our alliance with Tortall. I am allowed to ask you this question! Toralina of Conte and Olau, will you marry me? Don't worry; I know what your answer will be. However, I won't send the ring until you write back. Father says that you will come to Carthak in half-of-a-year. We'll be married in a year. _

_Don't forget to say goodbye to your friends. You should do so soon, as we need to plan for the wedding soon. Oh, by the way, I have decided to enclose the ring with this letter. I can't wait any longer. _

_With all my love, _

_Prince Zamar, Crown Prince of Carthak _

Torah sighed and brushed a tear off of her cheek. Why did life have to be so complicated? (Hey! That's a song! I'm so weird!)

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Dun, dun, dun! Oh no! Will Torah say yes??? I guess you'll have to wait until next chapter to find out! Wow, am I mean, leaving you this nasty cliffy! And, I won't be writing the next chapter until three weeks time! We're going on vacation, and then I start high school! Wish me luck!

(By the way, I was only kidding! The next chapter will be up in a couple days! And no, Rikash will not get jealous! He is too nice for that!) I LOVE RIKASH! He has a lot of fans; have you noticed???? Who's a Rikash fan????


	11. Midnight Chats

Right now Torah is with Rikash, thanks to a lot of his fans! (cough) SOPROL! (cough) You are welcome to try and convince me otherwise, but I am in love with him so I doubt if it will happen. Please, please send in a review! If you don't review, I will be very sad and not post another chapter! (Okay, I probably will because I love writing about Torah. She's really interesting!) If you don't review, I will cry and get very mad!

By the way, I really am Tamora Pierce. (If you actually think that I'm serious, then you have problems!)

I have decided to be nice and give you another chapter today. Feel free to thank me and kneel down at my feet. However, I am putting nothing about the proposal in it! I am not _that_ nice! Okay, FINE! I am! Gosh! This will never happen again if I don't get reviews…unless I get really bored and have nothing else to do. Oh, crap! Did I just say that out loud? Now I have no way to threaten you guys! Hey does anyone even read my notes anyways??? You should! They make me feel awesome! Okay, okay, I'm shutting up now! I really think I had too much chocolate today!!!!

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Summery of last time – Torah gets a letter from Zamar. He 'asked' her to marry him. She isn't too happy about it.

This time:

Torah raced out of her room and into the dinning hall. Numair and Thom were the only two sitting in their. Both of them had glasses of cider. Torah knew it wasn't alcohol. Mages weren't supposed to drink it when working. It could cause them to lose control and that could kill people. It had been one of the first lessons they had learned.

Torah ran up to them. Thom glanced at her. "Torah, you're supposed to be asleep. What are you- are you crying?!" Thom stood up and went to Torah. He put his arms around her. Numair took that as an opportunity to leave.

Torah sobbed into her uncle's shoulder. When she finished crying, she said, "Zamar proposed to me." She stared at her uncle.

He smiled back. "That's excellent!"

Torah shook her head. "No, it isn't! I don't love him! I love Rikash! I don't want to marry him, and even if I did, I'm barely fifteen! He wants us to get married next year! I don't want to marry him, but I don't want to lose him as a friend either, and I know that if I don't accept, I will!"

Thom sighed and steered her to a chair. He poured her a glass of cider. "Torah, didn't you once tell me that you loved Zamar?" He held up his hand as Torah opened her mouth. "You said that you two had been best friends since the day you first met. Am I right?" Torah nodded. "You said that as you got older, you received your first kiss from him at eleven." Torah nodded again. Thom smiled before saying, "You also said that after that, you weren't friends anymore. You said that you were just young lovers. Is that true?"

Torah hesitated before nodding. Thom grinned at her. "You changed completely from friends to lovers. When you take a spouse, the only way that you'll get along is if you like him _and_ love him. You need someone to make you laugh _and_ comfort you. Do you understand?"

Torah nodded and smiled for the first time that night. Thom opened his arms and hugged her. He sighed in relief. "Good. I'm giving you tomorrow off so you can talk to your mother. She deserves to know, and I've probably confused you as much as I helped you."

Torah grinned. "Thanks a lot, Uncle. You didn't confuse me too much. Even so, I am glad to have a day off so I can go visit my family. I'll see you in two days. Thank you so much!" Torah bowed and rushed to her room to pack.

The wind took her to the Conte manor. She opened the door by pressing her finger to the lock. The doorbell rang as she entered. As she had suspected, everyone was awake. Her mother and father rushed to the door, followed by Thomath, Elena, and Mylon. A minute later, Nashi came into the hall also. Torah smiled as she was hugged by the whole family.

"Torah, you should have come sooner!" Elena said loudly. She was six and the exact picture of her father; tall, dark-haired, dark-eyed. She beamed up at Torah, who reached down to ruffle her braided hair.

"Yeah, Torah!" Mylon said. Torah grinned. Mylon was only three and pronounced her named with a 'w' instead of an 'r'.

Liam and Kali hugged her next. Kali looked a little concerned. She recognized Torah's fake smile. Torah nodded to her old bedroom. Kali nodded an understanding. "Liam, would you get the children to bed while I help Torah unpack?" Liam nodded and picked Mylon up in one arm and Elena in the other. The others reluctantly followed.

Torah sat on her bed. Kali sat beside her. "Mother, Zamar proposed to me. Well, here." She handed her mother the letter. Kali quickly scanned it. She was glaring in a few seconds. "What do you think?"

Kali threw the letter on the ground. "Let me see the ring!" She demanded. Torah reached into her pocket and drew out a beautiful golden band. A huge diamond was in the center. On either side of it were rubies, amethysts, emeralds, and sapphires. It was beautiful, but Torah didn't want it.

Kali glared at it. "How dare he take your acceptance for granted!" She hissed. (Remind you of anyone???) She picked the letter back up and scanned it again. "Well?" She demanded.

Torah sighed. "Ma, I don't want to marry him." She told Kali everything that Thom had told her. By the end of it, Kali's temper had vanished and she was nodding her agreement.

"Yes, I think that Thom is right. I also think that you'll be much happier with that mage of yours." Torah rolled her eyes, but she was grinning happily. "I think we'll have to go to Carthak to refuse him though. It would seem as your avoiding him if you send him a letter. We need that alliance still. He'll think more of you if you go to Carthak and tell him no. The whole family can go. I'll talk to Kally and Kaddar."

Torah nodded. "What about Mel and them? Should I tell them of this?"   
Kali shrugged. "That's up to you."

The next day, Torah spent with her siblings. She fenced with Thom, embroidered with Nashi, and showed magic to Elena and Mylon. Finally, Nashi asked her why she was visiting.

Torah grinned wickedly and raised and eyebrow. "I could ask you the same." When Nashi just rolled her eyes, Torah sighed. "Zamar asked me to marry him." Her sister gasped. "It would take place next year."

Nashi waited for more. When Torah said nothing else, Nashi asked, "And?"

Torah shook her head. "I'm saying no. We'll be going to Carthak right after Midwinter so I can tell him. He's going to hate me, but I guess that it's better than getting married to him."

Nashi smiled and hugged her sister. "Am I still allowed to marry Razan?" She asked slyly.

Torah giggled. "I didn't know you two were getting married, but of course. It doesn't change anything between you and your love bird." Nashi scowled and rolled her eyes at this. Torah gave her a hug and went to go spar with Thomath.

Two hours later, it grew dark. To Torah's delight, a storm came in. Torah hugged her family goodbye and left with the wind. Elena and Mylon watched her wistfully. Torah nearly lost her concentration when she started laughing after she heard Elena say, "I love magic."

Back at the university, Torah went straight to her room. As she suspected, Rikash and Mel were waiting for her. Mel asked her where she had been. Torah wordlessly handed over the letter from Zamar. She slipped her Yamani Mask on. Mel read the letter and passed it to Rikash. Her mouth was open in confusion as she stared at Torah.

Rikash read it and also stared at Torah. Torah sighed and sat on her bed. "I leave for Carthak after Midwinter." She said. She looked at Mel's shocked and angry expression and at Rikash's depressed one and opened her mouth in horror. "That's not what I meant at all! I'm only going to save the alliance to Carthak." Mel grew angrier, and Rikash looked more depressed. Torah stood up. "Okay, that didn't come out right! I am going to Carthak to tell him no!"

Mel and Rikash relaxed. "Why?" Rikash said.

Torah shrugged. "Ma said that it would save our alliance if I tell him no in person." She explained.

Rikash shook his head. "No, why are you not marrying him?"

Torah raised her eyebrows at Rikash. "I've already found someone for myself. I'm already in love." Torah ran to hug Rikash. She buried her face into his shoulder. He hugged her tightly. Mel sighed and ran from the room. Only then did they kiss.

The next day, the girls of noble families were to report to the palace to get fitted for dresses for Midwinter. Torah groaned when Thom told them this at breakfast. Mel raised her eyebrows in shock.

"You love balls!" She said.

Torah shook her head. "I only liked them because it was the perfect opportunity to flirt and kiss men. Now, I have someone I love. I will be miserable to whole time, although I am looking forward to getting seven new dresses. I wonder what colors I should pick." Torah frowned in concentration. Mel sighed and looked at her.

"You need a royal blue, a violet, a red, a pink one, a green one, a yellow, and…oh yes! For the last day you should have a white one with gems sewn into it. I think that amethysts and sapphires would be good." Mel nodded. Torah wrote all this down. Her cousin had an eye for this sort of stuff.

Torah was fitted for all these dresses. The seamstress admired Torah. "Oh milady, you will look dazzling! You don't even need a corset, although you should wear one anyways. It is the style these days! I agree with your colors too! Come here!"

After the fittings, the cousins went to visit Liano. Liano was quite glad to see them. She thrust one gold and one silver crown into Torah's hands. Torah stared at them. There were the same gems on them that were on her ring. She stared at Liano.

"They're yours. You have some royal blood in you. It's your right to wear these. It was my parents' birthday present to you, but they weren't done until today. You came at a very good time!"

Liano told Torah about her princess lessons. She seemed to be enjoying them. Torah knew that she would be a very good queen someday. She was shocked when Liano asked, "So when are you having your coronation?"

Torah blinked. "I'm not going to be queen. You are."

Liano sighed and rolled her eyes. "Have you been listening? No, you haven't. I was trying to ask you when you'll be the official Lightning Queen!"

Torah shrugged. "I already am. I always have been."

When they got back to the university, Torah went to the library. She found a book on the Weather Queens of the past. She was surprised when she saw that there had only been three others. In the year 235 B.H.E (before human era) there had been the Cloud Queen, Ankita. She was now a child of the Mother and Mithros, and the goddess of spring. A hundred years before her, the Thunder Queen had ruled. Paelinne was now the goddess of summer. In the year 45 H.E. (human era) Zerana had been crowned the Wind Queen and the goddess of fall.

Torah gasped at the last chapter. The youngest sister is Toralina. She will be crowned to goddess of winter, and she will rule over her siblings. She will be called the Lightning Queen by mortals. She is the most powerful by far, and she alone will sit on the counsel of the Great Gods.

Torah shook her head. "I'm going to be a Great God someday." She fainted.

She woke up an hour later. She was in her own bed, clutching the book to her body. Mel, Rikash, and Gavi stood over her, looking concerned. Lila was nearby, talking to a magical fire in her hand. Rikash noticed Torah first.

"Torah, how are you feeling?" He asked anxiously. Torah handed him the book.

"Read the last page out loud." Torah said weakly. He did. When he had finished, he looked up in awe. Mel and Lila's mouths were wide open. Gavi's eyes glinted. Torah frowned at her. Gavi took the book from Rikash and flipped through it.

"I'll end up with you, Torah! It says here that minor weather mages end up serving the four weather queens. How exciting!"

Torah scowled. "I'm not having you serve me, but you could surely live with me in my ice palace." Torah said sarcastically. "No wonder I like Midwinter so much." She rolled her eyes. "That book's a bunch of rubbish."

Lila looked up from her conversation. "Then why'd you faint, Majesty?"

Torah scowled more deeply. Mel smiled. "There's a good question. Why would your name and title be in a book written a hundred years ago? It's no coincidence, and you know that, so stop scowling, Majesty."

Torah jumped to her feet. "Stop calling me that, Princess Melaniah of Annoying Cousins!" She gave a mock curtsy. "Queen Lalita of Love-struck Girls. And Goddess Gaviena of Honorable Students! I didn't forget you, Rikash, King of Worriers! I am no queen!" She stomped away.

Mel shrugged and picked up the book again. :She's a goddess!"

Lila nodded. "A Great one at that!"

Torah had been eavesdropping. "I am not!" She yelled. "You had better not tell anyone about that rubbish, or I'll murder you!" She stomped away angrily.

Mel shook her head. "She almost never makes threats. When she does, she means them. No one tell anyone or she'll have our heads." Everyone nodded in agreement.

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Not my favorite chapter, but I still liked it. Did you guys? You should review and tell me! If you don't then I will go on a vacation for three weeks! I will leave you in suspense! Mwah ha ha! Okay, fine! I probably won't. I'm not lying though. My school starts August 16th, so if I want to finish this, I'll need to get writing, and for me to get writing, you guys need to get reviewing! I'm thinking of writing a couple more chapters here, and then writing another book with Torah. She's still a Novice blue robe, and it's already pretty long! Would you rather me just continue this one and have it be like fifty chapters, or would you want me to start another book?? Doesn't matter to me!


	12. Heartbreaker Heartbroken

OHHH! I love this chapter. I hope you guys do too! Don't forget to review! Oh, and before I forget, Torah's full titles are: Queen Toralina the Heartbreaker of Lightning, Conte, and Olau. Goddess of Winter. So, yes she still gets to keep her favorite title of Heartbreaker! Ha ha!

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It was Saturday, much to Torah's relief. The young woman quickly dressed in a corset and a summer green gown. She ran out of door, unaware that she had no shoes on. She ran back into her room a minute later to grab a pair of slippers. She swore loudly when she stubbed her toe while attempting to hop down the hall, trying to get her shoes on her feet. She heard a giggle behind her. She turned and glared at Lila.

"Stop scowling, Torah. It's going to give you wrinkles." Lila said trying, and failing to keep her face straight. Torah rolled her eyes and stuck her tongue out. Lila caught up to her, and the two girls made their way down to breakfast.

"Why are you all dressed up?" Torah asked, raising an eyebrow at Lila's pink gown. Lila smiled brightly.

"I'm going down to the palace to see Jakkin today. He is so handsome!" Lila fluttered her eyelashes. Torah rolled her eyes, unaware that that's what she used to act like. Lila stopped daydreaming to look at Torah. "Why are you dressed so fancy?"

Torah smiled and posed like one of the Players would. "I like looking beautiful, although I would look gorgeous in anything." Lila giggled. Torah sighed and placed her hands on her hips. "Fine, if you must know, I'm going to the palace to go on a picnic with Jakkin. He invited me to go with you guys."

Lila stopped. "He did not!" Torah tried to cover her smirk, but was too late. Before she could stop laughing, Lila had drawn her fan and was now attempting to smack Torah with it. Torah wiped her tears of mirth away and reached into her own sash to grab hers.

When the two girls entered the mess hall, they were all disheveled. Everyone turned to look at them. Lila stuck her tongue out at the table of gaping young men and went to grab two trays as Torah fixed their appearances with magic. After sitting down, Lila took a piece of bread and dipped it in her porridge. Torah, who wasn't very hungry, rolled her eyes and pulled her bread apart into several small pieces. Lila raised an eyebrow. Torah grinned back.

She flicked the first one up towards where Thom sat. Instead of hitting him, it fell short and hit Gemelle of Kennan in the head. Lila opened her mouth in shock as the girl turned around and glared at the surrounding tables. Torah elbowed Lila in the ribs and glared at her. Lila nodded.

The rest of breakfast was spent by flicking bread crumbs at an agitated Gemelle. Torah and Lila were just about to flick their last ones, when a voice whispered in their ears, "Having fun?" Lila yelped, and Torah jumped up, knocking over the table in the process. Gemelle's friend Felcia of Mae's Mountain stood there glaring. She was soaked in the porridge that Torah had knocked over. Lila grabbed Torah by the hand and pulled her out of the room. Torah threw a napkin to Felcia, shouting, "Dry yourself off, dear." She mocked Gemelle's voice.

Torah ran into her rooms to grab the book about weather queens. She was going to show it to her mother. She wanted to know why she had been named Toralina. Could it just be a mistake?

She found her parents in the first place she looked; the practice courts. She ignored the boys' whistles and cries of, "Heartbreaker!" It seemed a long time ago that she would have encouraged them to whistle at her. Torah smiled slightly; it seemed that she was growing up.

"Ma!" She yelled. Three figures came out of the practice courts. Torah gave her mother and father a hug. She groaned as Jakkin hugged her tightly. "I do need to breathe, you know!" She yelled at him. Jakkin let her go at once.

"That's all well and good, fair lady, but could you please tell me where my lovely Lila is? It seems that she has not come. I wonder-" He broke off as Lila rammed into him. Before he could protest the hard blow, Lila's lips had met his own. Torah grinned and turned away.

A dark-haired boy of around fourteen yelled, "Get a room!" He turned to Torah and grinned. Torah smiled back at her friend, Prince Jassikam. Before Jassikam could say anything to her, Liano came into the courts followed by Lani and Ani. Liano nodded curtly to Torah and winked. Ani and Lani waved and started to practice.

Torah turned back to her mother. "Ma, I need to talk to you."

Kali grinned. "You've been needing to talk to me a lot lately."

Torah giggled. "I think my life's been getting more complicated lately. Can we talk in your rooms, please?"

Kali nodded and turned to whisper something in her husband's ear. He nodded back to her, and Kali took Torah's arm and pulled her up to her rooms. The two women sat down on the bed. Torah wordlessly handed the weather queen book to her mother.

"You can read it later. Just look at the names of the queens and goddesses. Look at the pictures." Torah explained as her mother opened it.

Kali turned to the last chapter. She glanced at the pictures in the back of four girls. The first girl wore a lavender dress and had tight golden curls that fell just past her shoulders. That was the Cloud Queen and Spring Goddess Ankita. The second girl in the picture was a red-head. The Thunder Queen and Summer Goddess, Paelinne wore a green dress, well, not much of a dress. She wore a lime green breast band with golden embroidery. She wore a long, soft skirt in the same color. The next girl was seated. She had brown hair that fell to her hips in straight locks. She was the only girl who looked serious. Her dress was red and covered most of her body, unlike her sisters. That could only be Zerana, the third eldest. Kali's gaze, however, fell on the last girl. She was standing behind her sisters. She wore a blue-white gown and was grinning. She had bright purple eyes and long curly black hair. It was the exact picture of Torah.

Kali smiled sadly. She put her arms around her daughter. Torah looked up at her, shocked. "You aren't even surprised. Why not?"

Kali sighed. "I knew."

Torah stood up. "What?!"

Kali sighed. "Sit down, Toralina." Torah winced at the sound of her full name, but she knew that Kali wasn't mad, but sad. She obeyed. "Torah, it's time that I tell you about your birth."

Torah raised an eyebrow, but didn't interrupt. Kali continued. "A year after Liam and I had been married, I was out riding. It was after dark. I was sitting by my fire, eating, when I heard a noise. The Goddess and four little girls came into view. Three of the little girls looked very bored. One looked very excited. The Goddess asked me if I would give birth to her daughter. I agreed. It would be a folly to refuse the Goddess. The excited little girl stood in front of her mother. The Goddess did some sort of magic, and she was gone, and I was pregnant. I was pregnant for nine months, as you know. One day in the middle of April, I was sitting in my room reading. The Goddess came in and asked me to name my little girl Toralina. I agreed. I had you the next day."

Torah wiped a tear off of her cheek. "So you aren't my mother?"

Kali glared. "Of course I am! I'm the one who gave birth to you! I think that that makes you my daughter!"

Torah grinned. "I was hoping that you agreed with me! Thanks for always being there for me!"

Kali was also crying now. "Thanks for letting me!" She whispered back. "Will you remember you're mother when you're a goddess? You'd better come and visit me in the Peaceful Realms every so often, or I'll become an old restless soul!"

Torah laughed. "Of course I will! You could come live in my ice palace!"

"I'd like that!" Kali said. "But for now, why don't you get ready for next week? You should look like a beauty for the balls."

Torah rolled her eyes. She wasn't looking forward to Midwinter this year. She hoped that she'd be able to escape early.

A week later, Torah was dressed in a royal blue gown. She wore blue paint over her eyes, which were violet, as it was winter. She groaned when she saw that was one of the 'lucky' ladies who got to be escorted down the stairs by handsome young knights. She rolled her eyes when she saw who her escort was. Jassikam must have asked her parents if he could escort her.

The herald from downstairs yelled, "Prince Jassikam of Conte, Squire to the Realm of Tortall and Lady Toralina of Conte and Olau."

The two of them walked down the stairs talking, even though they weren't supposed to. Jassikam was complaining how much he hated balls. Torah snorted, louder than she had intended to. The king glanced up at them, frowning slightly. Queen Shinko's eyes crinkled. Torah and Jassikam couldn't even talk, they were laughing so loud.

Roald smiled at the laughing pair. "Lady Toralina, maybe next time you should refrain from laughing. Jassikam, do not encourage her."

Torah gave her curtsy and Jassikam gave a bow. They seated themselves in seats near the front. Torah was still laughing when the herald introduced the last man and lady presented at Court. Both doors were opened, indicating visiting royalty. Torah stopped laughing as soon as she heard the herald's voice say, "Prince Zamar of Carthak, and Princess Faziah of Carthak."

Roald stood up to embrace his niece and nephew. "Welcome my Niece and Nephew. We hope that you enjoy your visit in Tortall. Please, have a seat. May you always grace our halls, Princess Faziah."

The sister and brother gave a curtsy and bow. Roald nodded to two chair by Liano's. Liano stood and kissed her cousins' on each cheek. "Cousins." She greeted them. "Welcome to Tortall. It has been too long." Torah ducked down as Zamar's eyes searched for her.

Torah winced and left the room. She couldn't think about Zamar. He wasn't supposed to be there! She didn't want to talk to him! Why couldn't he understand that Torah didn't love him? Why couldn't he understand that she didn't want to hurt him?

Torah made her way to a balcony. She sat down on a bench. She closed her eyes and breathed in the smells of the sweet roses and lilies. They looked beautiful by the moonlight. She shook her head, ridding herself of thoughts.

She climbed and stood on the railing of the balcony, ready to jump. A tear trickled down her face. She bent down…

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Wow, am I mean! I'm sorry, but if you review the next chapter will be up faster than ASAP! That doesn't even make sense. Oh well, just review!!! Oh, and last time…Who should Torah end up with??? Rikash or Zamar? I am pretty sure that it's going to be Rikash, but it's going to be hard for him and Torah. What should Zamar's reaction be? Or should it be the other way???


	13. Love and Betrothals

OHHH! I love this chapter. I hope you guys do too! Don't forget to review! Oh, and before I forget, Torah's full titles are: Queen Toralina the Heartbreaker of Lightning, Conte, and Olau. Goddess of Winter. So, yes she still gets to keep her favorite title of Heartbreaker! Ha ha!

Okay, fine! I'm not mean enough to kill off Torah! You guys didn't actually think that I would, I mean come on! She can fly, remember??!! You'll see why I did that in a second. Thanks for reviewing SOPROL and C.McPherson. I love you guys! 

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Last time - She climbed and stood on the railing of the balcony, ready to jump. A tear trickled down her face. She bent down… 

This time – 

…and jumped. Torah heard a scream from behind her. Zamar's head appeared over the balcony. Torah swore and got the winds to push her back up to him. He looked at her in surprise when she landed back on the balcony gracefully. 

Zamar ran up to her and hugged her tightly. He kissed her and spun her around the balcony. Torah sighed and pushed him away. He laughed, obviously relieved. 

"You jumped over the balcony. Ar-are you crazy? Are you okay?" Zamar asked. 

Torah raised an eyebrow. "I do have magic, Zamar. Remember? I have the Gift. I can fly now. Watch." Torah walked to the balcony and jumped over it again. She flew around wherever the wind took her. "I'll be back in a bit." She called. 

Torah flew to her rooms. She threw her gown on the floor and quickly dressed in a tunic and breeches. She pulled her hair up into a braid. She angrily brushed a hand over her watery eyes. She needed to talk to Zamar, but did she have the heart to turn him down? 

Torah flew back to the balcony where Zamar stood waiting. He raised an eyebrow at her black outfit. He had never seen Torah in breeches before. Torah never wore them. Zamar took Torah's left hand and kissed it. She pulled away. Zamar stared at her hand before turning to look at Torah in confusion. 

"Why aren't you wearing your wedding band, dear? We're going to be married. You shouldn't feel bad about bragging. It's okay to let everyone know." 

Something in Torah snapped. She drew herself up to her full height and glared coldly at Zamar. He opened his mouth angrily. "What is it? What's with you?" 

"I never told you yes, Zamar! Maybe I don't want to marry you!" Torah glared coldly. 

Zamar laughed, thinking that Torah was just being difficult. "Torah, darling, I know that you love me as much as I love you. Why wouldn't we get married?" 

"I'm fifteen! That's way too young!" 

"Not in Carthak, it isn't. Besides, I need an heir to the throne. If something happened to me, I would need someone else to take my place." 

"We're not in Carthak, and I'm not marrying someone who thinks that all I'm good for is baby-making and to order around! I'm not a puppet, Zamar! I'm a person with feelings and a life!" 

"I'm sorry, Torah." Zamar said. He sounded strangled, like he was trying to hold back his laughter. Torah walked up to him and slapped his face hard. Thunder boomed in the background. Torah spun on her heel and went into the storm again. 

"I will never marry you!" She yelled heatedly. She heard Zamar swear at her. She didn't care. A pink streak flew past her. Torah stopped to watch Toma go flying towards Zamar. 

"She is no toy! She's the Lightning Queen." Toma said. 

Torah giggled softly. "Toma, come on!" She yelled. The pink dragon flew back to her. Torah raised an eyebrow at her. "I thought that you hated coming to the palace. Usually when I come here, you stay behind." 

Toma snorted. "Someone needed to remind that pig-head of who you are." She replied. 

"He doesn't even know what it means, Toma." Torah said, raising an eyebrow. 

Toma shrugged. "So? Sometimes the unknown is worse than knowing." 

Torah gave a half-smile. "Sometimes." She sighed. "Where are we supposed to go, Toma? The university is probably closed because of Midwinter, I'm not going to the palace when he's there, and I can't go to Carthak! Those are the only places I'm welcome!" 

Toma grinned wickedly. "You're welcome in the Realms of the Gods." 

Torah gasped. "What?! I can't go up there; I'm not ready to die yet!" 

Toma snorted. "Fine, fine. All in good time, then. Let's go back to the university. I'm sure I cam get us! If I weren't your protector, I would make a good spy." 

"Whatever." Torah said, rolling her eyes. 

The two of them flew down to the university. Torah glared at Toma when she saw that the university wasn't closed. There were no guards even out. "A really good spy." Torah snorted. 

Toma said, "Now I'm hurt." She smirked. 

Torah snorted loudly. "I'm sure." 

Torah walked to Mel's room nd knocked. Her friends hated balls and were allowed to stay at the university for Midwinter. The only reason that Torah didn't do the same was because Jakkin and Ani would murder her if she passed up an opportunity to visit them. 

Mel opened the door. She opened her mouth in shock. "Not only are you missing the Midwinter Balls, but you're wearing breeches and a tunic. And I thought I knew you." She said, shaking her head. 

Torah smirked at her. "Don't get too used to it, cousin." 

Mel rolled her eyes and stood aside. "Well, come on in. Why don't you tell us why you're here." Torah stepped inside and waved to Gavi and Rikash. They nodded back to her. Lila was still at the palace at the ball. 

"Why are you in such a good mood?" Gavi wanted to know. 

Torah snorted. "I got to yell at Zamar of Carthak." 

Mel gasped and jumped to her feet. "He was there? What did he want?" 

Torah shrugged. "For me to go back to Carthak with him. He wanted me to have his heir by next year." 

Rikash raised his eyebrows. "What did you say?" 

Torah grinned. "I told him to stuff it. I gave him the ring back, well, actually I threw it at him. It didn't quite reach him, but I'm not worried. He can buy another one. I just feel bad for Faziah. There is no way that I'll be welcome in Carthak again, and she's like a sister to me." 

Gavi smiled. "Maybe he'll fall in love with someone else here." 

Torah shrugged. "Maybe he will. I don't really care." 

Torah missed the rest of the balls. She chose to stay at the university with Rikash and Mel. She gave Gavi her dresses to wear to the balls. Gavi went in her place. 

The night of the last ball, Torah stayed up all night watching a storm. When someone burst into her rooms the next morning, she was still sleeping and was grumpy. She poened her weary eyes and saw Gavi shaking her. "Yes?" She moaned. 

She could tell right away that Gavi was happy, but she looked a little nervous. Torah sat up and motioned for the older girl to sit next to her. Gavi ignored her and began to pace around the room. 

"Torah, I have to tell you something. The night of the second ball, I met this really handsome man. I didn't know who he was. He never told me his name. We danced and flirted and fell in love with each other. Last night, he asked me to marry him. His name was Zamar." 

Before Torah could speak, Gavi continued, as if she feared what Torah was going to do. "We really love each other a lot. I'll be very happy with him. But I still feel bad. I know that you wouldn't want me to marry him. You probably think that I'm stupid and not a good friend for agreeing to marry the man you love. Please know that if you don't want me to marry him, then...I won't." Gavi looked like she might cry. 

"Gavi, I don't love Zamar. I never did. It was just a little crush. We were never much more than friends. We're too alike. If you marry him, I'll give you my blessings. I think that you two will be very happy together." 

Gavi burst into tears. Torah hugged her friend tightly until she had stopped crying. Gavi wiped her eyes on her sleeve and said, "You don't know how much that means to me." 

Torah smiled wryly. "I think I do." That got a watery chuckle from Gavi. Torah hugged her again. "When do you leave for Carthak?" 

Gavi sighed and looked down at her feet. "Tomorrow at dawn. I am going to be the next empress so I need all the training I can get. I'm still allowed to get the rest of my mage training." 

Torah sighed and smiled. "I'm going to miss you so much." 

Gavi nodded. "I'll miss you too. I have to go say goodbye to the others. Zamar wants to talk to you. Promise that you'll come to the wedding in at Midsummer!" 

Torah grinned. "But of course, Majesty." 

"Don't call me that! We're friends!" 

"You should have thought of that before you started calling me lightning queen." Gavi laughed. "Where's Zamar?" 

"Just outside. See you later." Torah gave her one last hug. There was another knock on the door and Zamar entered. 

Torah smiled at her shoes. Zamar sighed and sat down next to her. "Torah, I'm sorry. I acted like a fool. I don't mean to be mean, but I never really wanted to marry you. My mother and father pretty much forced me to write that letter. Don't get me wrong; I love you, but as a friend." 

Torah hugged him. "Me too. I'll be at your wedding. You'll like Gavi. She's a good sorts. You'll be the perfect couple. I gave my blessing."

Zamar sighed in relief. "You have no idea how much that means to me, to us." He gestured to where Gavi had gone. "You'll visit?" 

"If you'd like me to." Torah smirked at him. 

"Of course, milady." He became serious. "Torah, promise me that we're still friends. Can we still be friends?" 

Torah kissed his cheek. "Yes. Come on. Let's go find Gavi. I have a feeling that she's going to be reduced to a puddle of tears if you don't comfort her soon." 

Zamar and Torah were right. Gavi had thrown herself into Mel and Lila's arms and was sobbing her head off. Zamar kindly plucked her off of them and held her. He raised her face to his own, and they kissed. 

Torah smiled and went to stand by Rikash. She leaned her head into his shoulder. His arm wrapped around her waist. "Let's go get some rest." He said. 

He carried Torah into her rooms. She fell asleep in his arms. Rikash laid her down gently nd laid down next to her. She snuggled into his arms. 

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO 

Aw, how sweet and fluffy! Yay Rikash! Here's my reasons for breaking Zamar and Torah up. They wouldn't be happy together. They are too alike. Torah is a headstrong girl who always needs an adventure, where Gavi is more quiet. Zamar would only be happy with the quiet girl. Torah wouldn't change for him and he wouldn't change for her. Rikash knows Torah and likes her for who she really is. If you want to write a fic about Zamar and Torah or Zamar and Gavi, or anyone for that matter, go ahead. Just make sure you send it to me so I can read it. My email is or you can just PM me. Thanks, oh, and review! Maybe if I get enough, I'll write a Gavi/Zamar starting at the ball or even a Zamar/Torah. REVIEW! 


	14. Zamar's Plans

Okay, fine! I'm not mean enough to kill off Torah! You guys didn't actually think that I would, I mean come on! She can fly, remember??!! You'll see why I did that in a second. Thanks for reviewing SOPROL and C.McPherson. I love you guys! I want to thank Chloe for this idea. I would have never got this far without her. Umm, let's see. I started school today, so I will try to get two chapters up on each weekend. I had no homework today, so I'm typing! Hmm…I think that's all. Please review, or I will hate you forever and ever.

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Zamar stared at his new fiancée angrily. She was pretty, yes, but she was nothing compared to his Torah. Zamar didn't even remember his soon-to-be wife's name. The only reason he had even asked her to marry him was to make Torah jealous. But no! Torah had fallen in love with her friend Rikash, and she had been happy for her friend.

Luckily, Zamar had a plan. He would get his little sister to help. He had arranged for them to stay in Tortall for an extra week. That would be plenty of time. Zamar smiled as he heard a knock on his door. He stood and opened it.

His little sister Faziah stood there. She looked at her brother with a quizzical eyebrow. "You said that you wanted to see me, although I don't know why you didn't just come to my rooms. I thought that you weren't going to be playing the part of emperor to me." She said.

Zamar gave a low bow. "Of course, my fair lady. I am most pleased with you for coming on this lovely day. Can I get you some tea?" Faziah rolled her eyes and pushed past him to take the hot pot of tea off of the fire. Zamar chuckled as she poured them each a glass and sat down.

He sipped at his tea for a little while, trying to make his sister impatient. She merely sat on the couch staring at him and the window. Finally, Zamar sighed and smiled at his sister. She glanced at him and then back out the window, trying to appear uninterested. Zamar rolled his eyes.

"Help me please." He knew that the best way to get his sister's help was to beg, no matter how much he hated it. Sure enough, Faziah turned to look at him, eyes wide in mock-shock. (ha ha! Mock-shock!!!)

"Faziah, I am no good. I should really resign as emperor so you could become the empress as soon as Ma and Da are gone. You are the smartest person that I know. Would you please help me, or will I have to beg?"

Faziah smiled. "Dear brother, you could have just asked."

"Okay, I will. I'm in love with Torah." Faziah widen her eyes in real shock this time. She shook her head. Zamar answered her unasked question. "I engaged myself to that other girl to try and make her jealous. Now I need to get Torah to fall in love with me, and to get my fiancée to go away. I need your help."

Faziah nodded thoughtfully. She frowned a little. "What's the plan?"

Zamar beamed at her. "I was thinking that we slip a little love potion into Rikash's drink tonight. It would be quite easy. All we have to do is get his to fall in love with you, and then that'll upset Torah. After he upsets her, she'll come running to me. How does it sound, dear sister?"

Faziah thought for a couple long moments. Zamar knew to leave her alone. She finally nodded and turned back to face Zamar. "It actually might work. That is, if you're willing to hurt Torah."

Zamar snorted. "Right! Faziah, I'm doing her a favor. She's stuck with that ugly brute that beats her. She'll be glad to get rid of him. Of course, it'll still hurt her. Girls like to be the ones to get rid of the boys. She'll be the Heartbreaker heartbroken! I'll be the one to help her!"

Faziah still looked unconvinced, but she nodded. "I'll do it." She said before spinning on her heels and racing from the room.

A few miles away, Torah sat on the roof of the university with Rikash. This was her favorite thing to do. It was cold, so she was leaning against him, arms wrapped firmly at Rikash's waist and head tucked under his chin. His lips were on her head, and his arms were wrapped around Torah, protecting her from the cold. They had only just got up there.

Torah watched Toma soaring through the trees. She giggled a little as Toma nearly hit into one. Rikash spun her around to face him. "What are you laughing about?" He asked.

In response, Torah tackled him and kissed him on the lips. Rikash laughed and rolled over on her. Torah closed her eyes dreamily as she sunk into the kiss. After a few minutes of the hot energy racing threw her, Torah broke the kiss to look Rikash in the eyes. Before she could even say anything, Toma gave a shriek that meant guests. Torah sighed and looked back up at Rikash wistfully. He seemed to feel the same way.

"Come on." He said taking her hand. Torah laughed and jumped off of the roof, holding onto Rikash's hand. At the last minute, the wind put them down gently. Torah laughed and turned to see Faziah. She grinned and kissed her friend on both cheeks. Faziah rolled her eyes, smiling, and did the same.

"Zamar decided to stay for a few more days, so I thought that I'd come see if you were going to the ball tonight." Torah nodded. Faziah laughed daintily. "That's very good. Would you like to go dress-shopping? I know the perfect store."

Torah smiled. "That sounds good. I'll see you later, Rikash." She kissed his cheek before turning walk with Faziah.

Zamar had been scrying this. He smirked; the first part of the plan had been set in motion. Now all that had to happen was for Rikash to drink some cider spiked with love potion tonight. Then Torah would love Zamar. Oh yes! Zamar looked into the water at Torah before letting the spell go.

Torah found a dress for Faziah right away. It was lavender, bringing the spark in the girl's eyes out even more. Faziah found the perfect amethyst necklace and earbobs to go with it. It took an hour for Torah to find a dress, let alone get it fitted.

It was white, with a low neck. Torah, even though she was tiny, had to wear a corset to fit into it. There were no sleeves. Along the top, there were sapphires sewn into the hem, and scattered along the bodice. Torah wore a set of large sapphire earbobs and a necklace to go with it.

The girls did face paint right before the ball. Torah had to admit it; her cousin was a beauty. Half of her long, curly hair was pulled back in a bun, leaving the other half to hang loose over her shoulders. Faziah was nothing compared to Torah, though. Torah had never looked more beautiful before.

They met Zamar, Gavi, Rikash, and the man who was escorting Faziah, near the double doors. They found seats near each other for the opening ceremony. Torah turned to smile at Rikash. She frowned as she saw him staring off into the distance.

Zamar watched this all while hiding a smirk. His lovely fiancée looked much the same way that Rikash did. Soon, Rikash would be in love with Faziah, and Gavi would be in love with him. After that, Torah and Zamar would be able to be together.

Flashback

Zamar knocked lightly on Rikash's door, carrying two drinks. Rikash opened it and smiled. "Hello." He said. Zamar gave a polite bow.

"While our ladies are getting ready and putting their finishing touches on, I think that we should have a drink. Here!" Zamar shoved the glass in her left hand into Rikash's. Rikash grinned and took a big drink. His face immediately changed from grin to stunned expression.

Zamar grinned. "Would you like to dance with Lady Gaviena or Toralina tonight?"

Rikash shook his head. "Faziah." He said. "I love Faziah."

Flashback Over

Torah was tired of Rikash. He hadn't been talking to her at all. When she asked him to dance, he refused, saying that he wouldn't dance at all tonight. He had said that he was tired. Torah looked over at where Zamar was dancing with Faziah. They were smiling at each other. Gavi stood wistfully by Faziah's escort. Apparently Torah wasn't the only one with love troubles tonight.

Suddenly, there was a shout. "I can't take it anymore!" A loud voice yelled. Torah watched as Rikash bounded across the room, shoving everyone in his path to the side. He ran right to Faziah and ripped her from Zamar's arms.

"No." Torah breathed.

"Yes!" Zamar thought.

Everyone watched in shock as Rikash slowly bent down to bring his lips to the young princess. Torah felt tears come to her eyes. She threw herself out of the ballroom before bursting into tears. Before that, however, she saw Zamar's confused expression as Gavi kissed Rikash.

Torah ran into Liano's rooms. They were locked though. She threw herself down on the ground and cried her heart out.

Strong arms lifted her. "Shhhh." A soft voice whispered. Torah obeyed. She buried her head into a strong chest. She looked up to see Zamar. His eyes were overly bright, shining with unshed tears. Torah buried herself into her arms.

"I'm sorry, Torah. I guess that they didn't love us. We still have each other, though. Torah, dear, will you marry me? I need a wife, and it seems like you are the only one for me. It seems as if we are meant to be together."

Torah nodded without hesitation. Zamar laughed and slipped a ring onto her finger. "We'll leave for Carthak tomorrow. Oh, and Torah? It wasn't Faziah's fault. She shoved him away after you left. Are you still friends with her?" Torah nodded and let herself be pulled to her rooms.

The next morning, Torah said goodbye to her family. Nashi and Thomath were the most upset, except for Kali, of course. Kali was in tears, saying that she hadn't expected Torah to get married in years. Torah laughed and agreed with her.

Torah hugged everyone one last time before turning to take Zamar's hands and board the ship. Torah didn't cry as the boat left. She wasn't fazed in the least. She didn't love Zamar as more than a friend, but she might learn to.

Zamar grinned to himself. He had tricked Torah into marrying him. Now all he needed was to rush along with the wedding, and then she would be married to him. Nothing could change that. She would be his forever.

A week later in Tortall, Rikash woke up and groaned. He leaned over to the side of his bed. He wasn't at the university. He was at the palace. What was he doing here? The last he remembered was Zamar. Where was Torah? He needed to see her.

There was a knock on his door. He winced as he stood up. He ached everywhere! What had happened? How long had he been asleep? He opened the door. Torah's friend Faziah stood there. Rikash assumed that she was looking for Torah, until he saw her tears.

"Who did that to you, Princess?" He demanded. Torah would never forgive him if he let her go.

"Please, it's just Faziah. After what I've done to you, I think that you can call me be my first name!" She said. Rikash frowned at her as she wiped her face on her tears.

"What do you mean?" Rikash asked.

"Torah left for Carthak a week ago. She's getting married to Zamar."

Rikash's eyes widened. His shoulders dropped. "Why?" He asked, voice cracking. "I loved her. I thought that she knew that."

Faziah put a hand on his arm. "It wasn't your fault. It was mine and Zamar's. Zamar was engaged to Gavi so that Torah would get jealous. It didn't work, so Zamar created a new plan. I feel awful. He slipped you a love potion so that you'd fall in love with me. It worked. Torah left the ball sopping. I never wanted to hurt her, only to help my brother out. If I didn't, he'd banish me from Carthak."

Rikash sighed in defeat. "What'll we do?"

Faziah smiled. "Summon the winds. They like you better than Zamar. I'm sure of it! I just know this kind of stuff." She added at Rikash's raised eyebrow.

Rikash nodded. "It's worth a try." He began the spy to call on an element.

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As I said before, this is dedicated to C.McPherson. Without her, my story would be very crappy. Everyone give a round of applause for her! Yay! Okay, here's some things that I better explain.

Why didn't Rikash sense the magic in the cider? Zamar's talent is hiding things, and Rikash had no reason to doubt Zamar.

Why didn't Torah realize that Zamar was a fraud and that Rikash was under a spell? Duh! She loves Rikash! She was too upset when she saw him kissing Faziah to try and figure out why!

Any other questions??? The next two persons to review can pick out a name each for a few new characters to come soon! Hurry up and review! Even if you aren't in the next two, you can submit a name or two. I'll pick the best, as long as you review!!!


	15. Unexpected Guests

I'm going to finish this chapter, and then I have to bed! I have school tomorrow! Sad, isn't it? We already have homework, but I thought that I would give you another chapter. You deserve another one for how long of a wait you guys had! Don't forget to review! For the names, I have chosen SOPROL's Myra and C.McPherson's Jazmyn. Thanks you guys. You'll see this chapter why I needed them!

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Torah sighed. The ship ride had taken a week. She had been in Carthak for a month and a half. She and Zamar were getting married in two days. Torah looked at where her dress stood. It was snow white. Torah turned away from it to look at her reflection in the mirror. She was even thinner than a month ago. Even though she was nearly sixteen, she weighed just under a hundred pounds. Kalasin was worried that she was starving herself. Zamar thought that she was trying to lose weight for the wedding. Torah was ashamed to say that it was the first one.

There was a knock on Torah's door. She turned to stare at it before turning back to the mirror. She put a Yamani mask on before answering it. It was Zamar. He smiled and touched Torah's stomach. "How's the baby?" He asked.

Torah smiled. "Everything's well, Zamar." She turned away from him. On the first night of their trip from Tortall to Carthak, the fiancées had slept together. Torah had found out a week ago that she was pregnant.

Zamar sighed. "That's good. Look, Torah. I talked to a healer today. He said that if you didn't gain more weight then you would lose the baby. Please, Torah! You weigh less than ninety pounds!" Torah shrugged and kept her back to him.

"I won't lose the baby. It isn't my fault that I'm never hungry. I'm not starving myself, Zamar. The baby will be fine. I promise that it'll be okay." Zamar sighed and reached over to kiss Torah's forehead. Torah leaned into him and let herself relax for a little while before pushing him away.

As soon as Zamar left, Torah turned to her window. She stared out into the distance, eyes crinkling up as the sun shined into them. She turned back to the mirror and put the finishing touches on her appearance on. She smiled without humor at her lifeless eyes.

"Highness!" A voice yelled. There was a knock on her door. Torah sighed and went to answer it. A small girl, only ten or so, stood outside the door. Her hair was shaved and she wore nothing more than a loincloth. Torah winced. Another slave. She was getting tired of Carthak and its slaves.

"What's your name, girl?" Torah asked kindly. The slave bowed low.

"I'm only a slave, Highness. I do not deserve a name." She kept her head down modestly. Torah snapped.

"I'm sick and tired of being treated like a prize here! I am only Torah! I hate slaves! Girl, you are no longer a slave so tell me your name!" Torah yelled. The slave winced and shrank away from her.

"Amma, milady. I'm Amma." She whispered. Torah winced and calmed down. She didn't mean to scare the girl. She had lost her temper. She was tired of her Yamani face. She wasn't Yamani.

Torah smiled kindly to the slave. "Amma, I need a maid. I was wondering if you would accept that position."

Amma glanced at her before yelping and hugged Torah around the waist. She immediately let go and winced, looking down. "Sorry, milady. I was just excited. You probably don't want me anymore. Are you going to whip me?"

Torah laughed and pulled Amma into her arms. "Of course not. I still want you as my maid. Why would I whip you? If I did, you'd be able to skive off from work tomorrow." Torah said, eyes sparkling with mirth. Amma smiled back, studying Torah's face. She nodded.

"Having children will be good for you, milady." She finally said. Torah raised an eyebrow, but Amma shook her head. Torah shrugged and dropped it. Torah gave Amma a plain, but well-maid tunic to wear. Amma, about to protest, smiled and put it on when she saw Torah's stern frown.

Torah and Amma walked down to the breakfast hall late. It was nearly noon. Zamar kissed Torah's cheeks, and Torah gave Kally, Razan, and the five year old Thayet hugs. She took her seat between Kally and Zamar. Zamar raised his eyebrows at Amma.

"That's my new maid. Her name's Amma. Treat her well." Torah said harshly. Kally smiled and nodded to Zamar. He reluctantly moved over so that Kally could put another chair there.

Breakfast was more cheery than it had been in days. Something about Amma reminded Torah of little Nashi. Torah winced. She had missed Nashi's twelfth birthday. She was a little sad about that. She knew that Nashi would be devastated.

After breakfast, Kally handed Torah some letters. Torah reluctantly opened the first one from her mother.

_Dearest daughter, _

_I'm going to tell you how I feel about this marriage. Don't be offended, I just want you to know how I feel. I think that you rushed into it. It is fair obvious that you do not love Zamar as much as you love Rikash. You'd be much happier with your mage. You and he need to talk, Toralina. _

_If you do go through with this magic, then I will still give you my blessings. I wish that you would listen to me, though. I know that I'm right this time. However, it is your choice and I will respect you either way. _

_Lots of love, _

_Ma_

Torah smiled. She opened the next letter, written my Thomath and Nashana.

_TORAH, _

_HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO US!? RIKASH IS MISSING; MOTHER'S AT HER WITS END IN WORRY, YOU EVEN MISSED MY BIRTHDAY! YOU AND YOUR MAGE BETTER WORK SOMETHING OUT FAST, BECAUSE I'M TIRED OF YOU SULLKING AROUND AND I DON'T LIKE ZAMAR! HE'S NOT LIKE HIS TOTALLY HANDSOME BROTHER!! I MISS YOU! _

_NASHI _

_She's right you know. We all miss you. _

_Thomath_

The last one was from Mel. Torah set it aside, wanting to open it later. She was determined to go through with this marriage no matter what her family and friends thought. She thought better of it, and she opened the letter.

_Torah, _

_We all miss you, including Rikash. He's gone missing with your cousin. Please, Torah. We all know that you don't want to marry your friend. He was never more than one of your friend flirts. Please trust me, Torah. You're my favorite cousin, and I care about you. Come home please! _

_Love,_

_Melaniah of Pirate's Swoop _

Torah sighed and wiped a few tears off of her cheeks. Why was Rikash missing? Torah shook her head. It hurt to think of him right now. She still loved him, no matter what she tried to tell anyone else. Why would Rikash do that? It wasn't even like him! Had he been drunk?

Torah didn't know and he didn't want to find out. Apparently Rikash and Faziah still had feelings for each other if they were both missing. They had even gone together. Torah shook her head to clear it and put the letters back in their envelops.

Two days later, a handsome, disheveled boy of sixteen and a fourteen year old girl arrived at Carthak by wind. Both of them looked relatively unhappy. The girl sighed as they touched down in front of the palace. She turned to her friend.

"So, Rikash, after the wind took us on that long journey and showed us the whole world, we're finally here. The wedding is taking place…now." She said.

Rikash swore. "Come on, Faziah! We have to hurry then!"

Torah was dressing in her large gown. Amma and a few other maids helped her into it and put faint paint on her stoic face. She finally managed to crack a smile at Amma who rolled her eyes and gave a little giggle.

"Milady, you look depressed. Doesn't she, girls?" Amma turned to her new friends, most of them older than she was. Everyone liked Amma and her cheery attitude. It was impossible to dislike her.

There was a loud knock on the door. Kally entered, carrying a large box. She beamed at Torah. "You look beautiful, my dear. Are you excited for today?"

Torah nodded solemnly. Kally gave the box to Amma to hold before sweeping Torah into a hug. Torah cried a little. "Tell me everything. Ladies, you may go get ready for the ball. Amma, you may stay."

Torah was sobbing by now. "I thought that he loved me! I loved him! I still love him! At the ball in Tortall for Midwinter, he kissed Faziah. He didn't even tell me that he was going to. He didn't tell me that he didn't love me! I don't love Zamar, but I don't know what else to do! It's too late for me to say no now! It's the day of the wedding and I'm pregnant!"

Kally remained silent until Torah was done. "You mean Rikash?" She asked. Torah nodded and buried her face into Kally's shoulder. Kally stroked her hair. "I don't know why he did that. Do you want to wait to get married?"

Torah laughed. "No thanks. I must do this for the good of our child. It would do him no good for his parents to live on opposite sides on the sea and for him to have to travel back and forth. It's for his good." She said.

Kally put her hand on Torah's belly. She looked up, smiling. "No. Not a boy. A girl. In fact, there're two girls. Twins." (A/N: Myra and Jazmyn!!!)

Torah gave a yelp of joy and threw herself on her friend again. Kally laughed and took the large box back from Amma. She opened it and handed Torah a large pair of diamond earrings. Torah put them on with a muttered thanks. Kally nodded and pulled a diamond necklace and bracelet from the box.

Kally stared down at the box. Torah raised an eyebrow. Kally looked up and smiled. Torah was shocked to see tears in her eyes. Kally shook her head. "I wore these on my wedding day. I can't believe that I'm going to be a grandmother. I feel so old, I guess. I mean, I'm young still, but grandmother! Wow. Anyway, here. This was mine when I was your age and getting married."

She put a small silver tiara on Torah's head. Torah smiled. "Thank you, Kally. It means a lot to me. Thank you so much."

Kally laughed. "No problem. Let's go, now. We don't want to keep them waiting."

Kally and Torah walked into the temple of the Graveyard Hag together. Torah noticed an old hag standing near the front of the church. She winked and disappeared. Torah blinked in surprise. She didn't know that the Hag would be here!

Torah didn't pay attention to the ceremony. Zamar looked handsome, but she refused to meet his eyes. She instead looked at the people that she would someday rule. There was Varice and her husband and two daughters. Beside her stood Zaimid and his Copper Island wife Saraiyu and their three children. Further on were Lindhall's sister and her family. Torah turned around as the priestess ordered Zamar to kiss her. They were inches away from each other when there was a loud scream.

"Torah! No! We need to talk!" Torah turned to the entrance. Rikash and Faziah stood there. Torah glared at him and turned back to Zamar. "It's too late, Salmalin. Leave me alone." She turned and kissed Zamar, ignoring Rikash and Faziah.

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Wow, am I evil!!! Well, the sooner you review, the sooner you get to know what happens! Although, I have a choir lock in tomorrow night starting at four pm. It ends at eight the next morning. After that, I have homework and a dinner that I have to go to. I have no idea when I'm going to be updating. Hopefully tomorrow! It depends how easy my homework is! Adios! Review! Wonder how you say that in Spanish…


	16. Wedding Disaster

See, I'm not too evil! I updated very fast. As I said before, the two names I picked out are Jazmyn and Myra. Okay, enjoy and review!!!

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Last time:

"Torah! No! We need to talk!" Torah turned to the entrance. Rikash and Faziah stood there. Torah glared at him and turned back to Zamar. "It's too late, Salmalin. Leave me alone." She turned and kissed Zamar, ignoring Rikash and Faziah.

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This time:

Before Torah's lips could touch Zamar's, a gust of wind blew them apart. Torah stared at Rikash, wonderingly. He looked as confused as she did. Something hit her in the face. Torah spun around to see Toma perched on the window. Torah groaned and gave her a glare. Toma cocked her head and flew down to rest on Torah's shoulder.

"You should know something about Rikash, Queen." She said smugly. Torah rolled her eyes and tried to push her off. She yelped as Toma's claws dug into her skin.

"What? Was he drunk? I don't care! He should have thought of that before! Mages shouldn't even drink! It's bad for mages to drink! It makes them lose control of their power!" Torah yelled.

"And he didn't lose control, did he? The last time I checked, the palace was still standing." Toma responded, still smug. Torah looked at her in shock.

"Wh-what? I don't understand!" Torah looked back at Rikash in confusion.

"Ask your betrothed." Toma said. She flew back to Faziah and landed on the girl's arm. Torah turned to face Zamar. He was looking at Rikash in annoyance and anger. When he saw Torah looking at him, he flashed a smile.

"Dear, ignore him. Obviously, my sister didn't want him, so he came back here to try and win you back. Isn't that right, dear?" Zamar took a step towards Torah and placed his arm around her waist. Torah turned to face him, anger portraying in her features.

"What did you do, Zamar? Faziah wouldn't be with him if she wasn't interested in him and he came here to win me back! Tell me what happened, Zamar!" Torah flashed him a cold glare. Zamar leaned in towards her.

"Don't forget our children!" He whispered. He put a hand on Torah's stomach and straightened. "I gave Rikash tea spiked with a love spell. He fell in love with my little sister. Gaviena, the girl who I was supposed to marry, fell in love with Rikash after receiving the same love potion. As I hoped, Torah came running to me. She's carrying my child now."

The crowd gasped. Faziah looked shocked. Rikash smiled at Torah slightly, before hanging his head. Torah turned back to Zamar, who was smiling smugly. Before he could say anything, Torah leaned in and whispered in his ear.

"The child_ren_ are no longer yours. Same with me, you foul pervert." She turned and slapped him hard on the face. "I never want to see you again! I wanted you as a friend, Zamar, but obviously you don't want me! You bore me, Highness!" Torah slapped him again for good measure and ran from the room, trying not to cry.

Kally and Kaddar stood up. It was Kally who spoke first. "There will be no marriage here today. Thank you for wasting your time. Son, we're disappointed in you."

Kaddar nodded coldly. "To go further, I disinherit you. I will not disown you, but you will never be emperor. I name my daughter Faziah heir to the throne of Carthak. Faziah, come here, please."

The small girl walked to the front of the room, trembling. Everyone sank into low curtsies and bows. Faziah nodded to them all. When she reached the front of the room, she turned to stand by her brother and father. Zamar stared at her in anger and shock.

"I can't believe that you'd do this to me, Father! You're making _her_ the heir! She's a girl, and a stupid one at that!" He turned to Faziah. "You're just going to butt in and take my position as the rightful king! I deserve the throne, not you, you little creep!" He yelled. Faziah smiled at him sadly.

"I'm sorry you feel that way, brother. You're nothing more than a power-hungry freak that cheats to get girls. Get out of my sight, please. I don't wish to see you right now." Zamar turned to the crowd before screaming and running from the room.

Rikash slipped from the room. He was followed by Toma. He smiled at her. "Too loud in there. Although, that was a good show. Remind me to set the winds against that big-headed prince someday." She said flatly.

Rikash laughed. "I will. Do you know where Torah is? I should talk to her. But, what if she still hates me, or doesn't believe me? She might still love Zamar, or- ow! What was that for?" He yelled as Toma landed on his head and gripped it hard.

"Self-pity!" The dragon said cheerfully. "I hate it." She flew to a closed door and nodded. "Torah's in there. Come and tell me when you're done. I need to talk to her. She made an awful mistake about getting together with that fat-head. I like you much better."

"Thanks." Rikash whispered, touched by the rare compliment.

Toma turned to glare at him. "Whatever." She said. She was back to her old-self. She snorted. "Don't let it go to your head. We don't need two big-heads! Now go!"

Rikash smiled grimly and opened the door. He glanced inside, insides melting as he saw Torah on the bed, crying her eyes out. Apparently, she still loved Zamar. She glanced up at him.

"Torah, I'm sorry. I know that you still love Zamar, but I wanted to tell you that I love you and always will." Rikash looked at the ground, waiting for her to laugh at him and tell him to leave. He looked up in surprise when she did neither.

Torah was sitting on the bed smiling at him. She looked sheepish, as if she was going to get scolded. Rikash raised an eyebrow at her.

"And here I was waiting for you to get angry with me for ever doubting you. I thought that you would hate me because I couldn't see through Zamar's plan. You shouldn't be sorry; I should. I know Zamar better than you. I know that he's always loved me and would do anything to get me. I am mad at you about one thing, though." She said. Rikash smiled at the glint of mirth in her eyes.

"What's that, Lady Toralina?" He asked, still smiling. Torah mock-glared at him and got off of her bed. She walked over to him.

"What in the name of Mithros' shield took you so long!?" She demanded. Before Rikash could answer, Torah's lips were on his.

The two kissed desperately and hungrily. Torah's hands slipped around Rikash's neck and tangled in his hair. Rikash's hands pressed against Torah's small back, pressing them closer together. Both of them could only focus on the kiss. It was like nothing before. They had never kissed this desperately before.

After a few minutes, Torah pulled away and leaned against him, smiling widely. She frowned suddenly and pulled out of Rikash's arms. She wobbled over to sit on her bed. Rikash followed her, a worried expression on his face.

Torah felt a tear trickle down her face. Rikash wiped it away. "What's wrong?" He asked her.

She shook her head. "I'm pregnant, Rikash. I'm pregnant with Zamar's daughters. You have every right to hate me." She turned away. Rikash smiled and put an arm around her.

"What if I say that I know that and I still love you and always will no matter what? What'll you say then?" Torah started to sob. Rikash pulled her onto his lap and turned her around so he could look at her. "What?" He asked.

Torah threw her arms around Rikash's neck. "Thank you so much! I love you!"

Rikash shrugged. "I know." He said, smirking at her. Torah giggled. "I'll adopt them if you want. We don't need to tell them that Zamar's their real father until their older."

There was a loud snort at this. They turned to stare at the door. Torah stood up. "Yes, Toma? Did you want something?"

The pink dragon cocked her head. "Yes, as a matter of fact, I did!" She said dryly. "I was going to wait until you were done, but it's taking forever so I came in here."

"We haven't seen each other in a month!" Torah protested.

"And whose fault is that?" Torah hung her head. Rikash put an arm around her and glared at the dragon.

"It's Zamar's." He said. Torah smiled at him gratefully. He smiled back. The dragon shrugged and flew to land on Torah's shoulder. Torah smiled at it.

"Well, you should now something." Toma said. "I happened to overhear you talking about Torah's children. They aren't Zamar's anymore. They're yours for now, Rikash. You shouldn't tell them about Zamar. He isn't their father."

"But we never-" Torah turned to stare at Rikash. "He isn't their father!"

Toma snorted loudly. "Humans! So ignorant! With dragons, it doesn't matter who gave birth to them. Their parents are who takes care of them the most. Their parents are who treat them the best. Your daughters' father is Rikash. I can see into the future sometimes." Toma smiled. "Now, Torah, I must talk to you."

Torah hugged Rikash one more time before leaving the room to go with Toma. Toma was silent for a few minutes before saying, "Zamar will never be emperor. Kally and Kaddar have named Faziah their heir."

Torah smiled in surprise. "Really?! Carthak will have its first crown princess! That is so exciting! You could have told me that with Rikash there though. Why are we here again?"

Toma landed on Torah's shoulder. "So I could yell at you. Right now I'm enjoying the quiet, though." She paused before saying, "Okay, I'm ready." Torah cringed as the dragon yelled right in her ear.

"I can't believe you! You left all of your advisors and subjects to fend for themselves! You are the lightning queen, Torah! You need to learn that no matter how upset you are, you still need to rule over us! You can't leave up on our own! I was supposed to look over you! You can't just run away! Gods, Torah! You can't ignore your magic! You're a queen! What would happen if Kalasin or Shinkokami or Thayet or Faziah turned away from their countries?!" The dragon stopped yelling. "All done." She said smugly. Torah sighed.

"I guess you're right. I'm sorry." The dragon nodded. Before she could speak, Torah did for her. "Wait, I know what you're going to say. You're going to say that you're always right, and you're going to tell me not to do it again."

Toma laughed. "You know me to well, Queen. All right; that's enough yelling for now. When are you going back to Tortall? Your friends aren't happy with you." Torah cringed again. She should have known.

"I don't know. I think I should stay here to help Faziah. Is Zamar going to be exiled?"

Toma gave half a nod. "Not out of the kingdom, but he won't be allowed to leave the family's winter home. He and his wife will stay there."

"Wife?" Torah asked.

"Oh, yes. He's engaged again. This time, Kaddar set it up. The empress didn't want him causing anymore trouble, so he's getting married. He'll be married to Ardinea, the youngest daughter of Varice. I think that she's Faziah's age."

"I feel bad for her."

"Don't. She's had a crush on him since she was six. Her sister Lizia is much more sensible. She said that I was beautiful."

Torah grinned as the dragon puffed up with pride. "She only said it to win you over. She wanted something from you. I can't believe that you actually fell for that!" Torah snorted loudly, trying not to laugh. She failed and started to laugh. Toma glared and flew away from her.

"Think whatever you want! I'm a dragon! You're a human! I would know!"

"I'm the Lightning Queen! I would know!" Torah tried to keep her voice straight, but she couldn't. Toma flew away, snout in the air. Torah started laughing even harder as she ran into a wall.

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Bit of humor in that chapter. I hope you liked it. It wasn't anything big after the first page, but I certainly enjoyed writing about it! Did you like it? Review!!!


	17. Sister to Sister

Next chapter's up! Don't forget to review!!! Thanks to all my reviewers! I think I'll be happy with like fifty reviews by the time this is done! I need some more inspiration though. I'm making this up as I go!

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Torah groaned and rolled over onto her side. Lately, she had been having trouble getting to sleep. She was seven months pregnant, and she was huge. Torah had gained more weight, to everyone's relief. She had gained nearly twenty pounds.

Torah was nearing her seventeenth birthday. Rikash had turned seventeen a month ago. Faziah was already the perfect princess. She was a beauty, she was smart, and she was able to talk to people of all classes. Torah watched her with pride, concealing smiles under her fan.

That night, Torah was having more trouble than usual getting to sleep. The twins were kicking her constantly, and no matter how much she tossed and turned, she couldn't get comfortable.

Torah stood up, having enough of sleeping. She ran to her window and summoned the winds to take her to her roof. After a few seconds, she was sitting on the roof. A cloud ventured down from the sky to wrap itself around her. Torah giggled and pulled it closer to her.

Something moved in the distance. Torah stood up, cloud following, to get a better look at it. She walked to the very edge of the roof and looked down. Being heavier than she was used to, she lost her balance and hit her head on the roof. She rolled off and fell.

Luckily, the person moving around in the dark night sensed this. She raced over to where the girl was falling and stood under her. The second Torah was about to hit her, the girl raised a hand. Torah gently was lain on a cloud. The other girl jumped up to sit beside her.

Torah woke up looking at the sky. She winced as she felt the back of her head. She jumped as a crystal voice rang out. "I healed it as best as I could, but I'm no mage." Torah turned around to face a golden-curled girl with steel gray eyes, glittering with amusement. She wore a lavender dress that didn't cover her whole body. She looked to be about twenty-four.

She smiled. "I'm Kati. I know who you are. Torah, the Lightning Queen. What a nice name! I trust that you were studying lightning when you fell." It was more of a comment then a question.

Torah nodded. "Yeah. How did you catch me?"

Kati grinned warmly. "Well, I guess we'd have to get around to formal introductions soon enough. Let me properly introduce myself. I'm Ankita of Herald's Song. I'm more commonly known as Queen Ankita of Clouds, Goddess of Spring. I'm the eldest season sister."

Torah beamed and hugged her sister. "I can't believe that I'm actually meeting you!" She squealed.

Kati shook her head, still smiling. "No, Torah. We've already met. We're merely getting acquainted with each other again. We're sisters; we've known each other forever. We live outside of time."

Torah rubbed her head. "This is making my brain hurt. Is that normal?"

Kati laughed. "Yes, I believe so. You live as a mortal now. You think like one too. You'll get used to it."

Torah hugged her once more before stepping off of the cloud, back onto her roof. Kati smiled at her. "Don't tell anyone about this, either. Mother-she wanted me to tell you something, but I think that I'm going to have her say it." She winced. "Don't say that you saw me. Maybe Mother won't care, but she probably will. It's not smart to make her angry, Bye!"

She was gone before Torah could respond or even figure out what Kati had meant. She walked back down to her room. She dressed in a dress, swearing when it didn't fit her. Apparently she had grown even bigger from two weeks ago when her dresses had been refitted. She slipped the one from the last night on and entered the hall.

She met up with Rikash and Faziah just outside the mess hall. Faziah giggled when Torah told her that she needed to go to yet another fitting. Torah scowled, until Rikash joined in. She couldn't help but smile after that.

Breakfast went by pretty fast. Torah was caught staring into space a few times. Her friends were exchanging concerned glances in front of her, but she didn't notice. She was too busy thinking about Kati's message. What did she mean by the Mother's message? Why would she care?

Torah shrugged it off and turned to smile at a worried Rikash. His face broke into a relived grin and he shook his head. Torah turned to Faziah. "So, are you betrothed yet?"

Faziah stuck her tongue out, although the relief on her face was plain. She grinned sheepishly. "I turned Ferran down. He wasn't good enough for me. No, not like that!" She added as Rikash chuckled. "He wouldn't be a good king. He was too power-hungry. I got rid off him last night."

Torah shook her head sadly, eyes dancing. "Well, well, well. Now who's the heartbreaker?!" Torah grinned wickedly. She had settled down and had stopped flirting all the time, but her title of Heartbreaker had stuck with her. Last week, the herald had introduced her to Court with that title. Torah had been furious.

The three of them walked down to the practice courts together. Torah cheered a little page boy on, cringing when he turned to look at her and got hit in the head. Faziah started to laugh. She tapped his shoulder and took his place by the young knight. The knight scoffed at her.

"Girls cannot fight, let alone by the crown princess." He said smugly. Fifteen minutes later, he was kneeling at Faziah's feet, begging her forgiveness. Faziah shook it off and helped him to his feet.

"Maybe nest time you'll think better of us females." She said, eyes dancing. The man agreed and was on his way. Faziah nodded to the page boy and walked over to the stables. She pet a couple of her horses. Torah watched her, amused. She giggled as one horse tried to bite Faziah. The princess turned around and glared at her.

"Torah, what is it?" She asked. Torah had felt something strange in her stomach. Suddenly, her legs were all wet. She tried to study herself, but she fainted.

In her blackness, she thought that she heard Faziah screaming and Rikash whispering to her. She saw the Black God's big head nodding at her. Torah suddenly realized what was going on. She was in labor, and she was now in the council of the gods. Torah spun around to look at four girls. She nodded to Kati before turning to face the Great Mother. She spoke.

"Daughter, you need to make a choice, a choice between life…and death. You will need to choose from…"

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Continued later. I have to go finish up some homework! Ugh! Sorry, I know that it's really short but I wanted to get it up before this weekend. Review, or I won't make an effort next time to put off homework to type! Or maybe I would…whatever! Just review please!


	18. Choices and Answers

Yeah, I don't own any of this, I'd like to thank my reviewers – I want to get up to fifty before the story ends. I'd also like for other people to review. This is an awesome chapter I think. I don't know though, all I have planned so far is the last sentence. Enjoy and review!!!

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Last time:

In her blackness, she thought that she heard Faziah screaming and Rikash whispering to her. She saw the Black God's big head nodding at her. Torah suddenly realized what was going on. She was in labor, and she was now in the council of the gods. Torah spun around to look at four girls. She nodded to Kati before turning to face the Great Mother. She spoke.

"Daughter, you need to make a choice, a choice between life…and death. You will need to choose from…"

This time:

"…being a goddess and wearing the crown of a god or your lover Rikash. You can only choose one or the other. You can't have both. Who do you choose; me or your prince?"

Torah gasped. "Great Mother! You can't do that! You can't make me choose between you and my friends! Please Mother!"

The Great Lady's emerald eyes didn't even blink. She replied in her cool manner. "I can do so, Toralina. I am the Goddess. What is your choice?"

Torah felt tears come to her face. "I'm sorry, Mother, but I choose Rikash. He loves me for who I am, and I know him well. As much as I want to get to know you, I know that I can't live without Rikash. I'll miss you."

The Goddess nodded. "So be it. You have an hour to spend time with your sisters and then you shall leave and never return again. Toralina, congratulations. Your second child was just born. Your first daughter was born an hour past."

"I haven't been up here an hour!"

"Time is different here. Go talk with your sisters."

Torah bowed low and went off to stand next to Kati. She was swept into a big hug. Zerana and Paelinne joined the hug.

Finally, she was released. Kati smiled at her, tears falling off of her cheeks. "I can't believe that this is the last time we'll see each other. I'll miss you!"

Zerana nodded solemnly. It didn't take long for Torah to figure out that she was the least outspoken of the sisters. Paelinne, or Paeli, was like Torah was when she had earned her title Heartbreaker. She was a bigger flirt than Torah had ever been. Kati was Kati. She was different, and Torah felt closer to her than the others.

The hour seemed short. Torah gave each sister a last hug before turning back to the Goddess. She was ready to meet her daughters.

A pink dragon appeared beside her. Torah silently gave Toma a small hug. She then squinted her eyes shut. When she opened them, she was lying in bed, Rikash and Kali sitting beside her, both crying. Torah winced and sat up, groaning as she realized how much she hurt.

Rikash and Kali both looked up. With yells of joy, they both threw their arms around Torah. Kali gave her daughter a kiss on the forehead before leaving Rikash and Torah alone.

"Are you okay?" He asked.

Torah laughed. "Of course I am. I was talking to my mother, the Goddess. She made me choose between you and her. I chose you."

Torah was hugged tightly again. "Gods, Torah. You didn't have to do that! You should have chosen to be with your sisters and parents!" He whispered. "You could have found another person, or god I guess, to love." Torah laughed and pushed him away.

"Rikash, I don't want to find someone else. All that I've ever wanted is right in front of my nose. You should learn to see what's in front of yours." Torah laughed and reached up and tweaked his nose. Rikash laughed and kissed her.

Torah was ready for everything that happened next. She was ready for Rikash to get down on one knee and hold a ring up to her. It wasn't as fancy as Zamar's, but Torah liked it better. Torah was ready to get off of the bed and kneel down next to him. She was ready to leap onto him and kiss him fiercely. And she was ready to say yes.

Rikash and Torah sat there on the floor for what seemed like a long time. Suddenly, Rikash stood up, pulling Torah up with him. She looked longingly back at the floor. Rikash laughed. "Don't you want to meet your twins?"

Torah's eyes widened, before she went back to looking stern again. "Our twins." She corrected. "They're ours." Rikash kissed her again, love in his eyes.

Torah was delighted with them. The elder one, who she named Myra after her ancestor, had the Conte black hair and the Trebond purple eyes. The younger one was named Jazmyn after Rikash's dead aunt. She had Torah's grandmother Alanna's red hair and the Conte blue eyes. They were both quiet children.

Torah and Rikash were married by Midwinter. Rikash's older sister Sarralyn turned out being one of Torah's best friends. Torah heard from her mother every so often. The Great Goddess had decided that Torah was still her daughter and going to be a goddess after all. Torah shook her head. Gods and goddesses changed their minds too quickly. The Lady might change it again by the end of the summer.

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Eleven years later:

"Ma! Ma! I can't believe that I'm actually a page! Can you believe that?! Isn't that really cool!" A little girl around eleven yelled.

Torah laughed and reached down to hug her daughter. "Jazmyn, you've been a page for a whole year now. Do you like it?"

Jazmyn rolled her eyes. "Yes, I like it. You'd have to be a fool not to. What I mean is that I'm a real page now, not a lady one! There was a law passed, and I'm now a regular page! No more special treatment!" Jazmyn seemed to see her mother's big belly for the first time! "Ma, you're going to have another baby! Girl or boy?"

Torah laughed. "Hopefully a boy. I think that little Jon is tired of being the only boy. Have you seen Alana anywhere? She was supposed to be back an hour ago!"

Jazmyn shook her head. "Nope. I didn't even know that she was here. I thought that she was going to go the convent."

Torah snorted. "Yeah right. Alana hates acting ladylike. She'll be another lady knight like yourself. Jon will probably follow Myra into sorcery. He has a Gift almost as powerful as mine and Myra's, although he doesn't have a Gift for weather. He'll be a very powerful Healer, though."

Jazmyn nodded thoughtfully. "What about Ely?"

Torah shook her head. "I have no idea. She won't care. She's a happy child, one that will be happy anywhere. Are you going to tell me all about page training? Wow, Jaz, you've grown taller!"

Jazmyn shrugged sadly. "Yeah, I'm nowhere nearly as pretty as Myra though. As soon as she gets to Court, she'll be getting all the boys. I'll be stuck being an old maid for the rest of my life."

Torah shook her head. She's eleven, and you can already tell that she's my daughter. She thought. "And Myra will tell them no. She can't even tell that boys like her. She'll never notice. She likes her lightning too much. No matter how pretty My is, no boy will get her for a while."

Jazmyn grinned. "Yeah, you're probably right. Want to here about my crushes? I've had six since I got to the palace." Torah choked on her lemonade and started coughing. She looked up, with watery eyes. "What?" Jaz asked.

"You remind me of myself, that's all. Go on and tell me about them."

Before they could get far, a tall beauty entered the room. She was dressed in a green robe that fell to her ankles and contrasted perfectly with her violet eyes. She was followed by a boy around nine and two girls seven and four. The older girl carried a book. Jaz jumped up to hug her twin.

"Myra! When did you get back?" Jaz asked.

Myra smiled. Boys would have melted at that smile. "Only a few minutes ago. I had some things to finish at the university. Why are you so enthusiastic? We just saw each other a week ago?"

Jaz grinned. "I've great news!"

"Really? Me too!"

"You first."

Torah cleared her throat. "Myra, do I not get a hug?" Myra turned around and threw herself into Torah's arms.

"Ma! You're pregnant! With a boy! Wait! A girl! No two boys and a girl!" Myra said happily. Torah turned white. "You're pregnant with triplets!" Torah opened her mouth before running out of the room, probably to tell Rikash. Myra looked at her in disbelief. "Maybe I shouldn't have told her all that. I'm only learning how to control my powers now, though. What's your news?"

"Well, I'm a real page! One without special treatment! What's yours?"

"I'm a green robe! I passed my test! I'm now an Intermediate!"

"That's excellent! Does Father treat you well? Isn't he your teacher? Is Uncle Thom still headmaster?"

"Yep. Da's very nice. He always is. You should come down with me sometime. I made a new friend! He's very nice!"

"You make a friend? You're the most unsocial girl your age!" Jaz said loudly.

Myra glared back. "I am not!" She took a pillow from the armchair and smacked her sister with it. Jaz smiled back and grabbed one of her own.

From the stairs, Torah smiled fondly at her daughters' pillow fight. She smiled at Rikash who had wrapped an arm around her waist. "Remember when we were that age?"

Rikash laughed. "Yes, I do. We weren't that crazy, were we?"

Torah laughed. "Yes, we were!"

Rikash grinned. "Only because of you." He kissed Torah gently on lips. They kissed for a while until the twins noticed. Jaz was wide-eyed, and Myra was wrinkling her nose in disguist. Rikash laughed at her. "My, wait until you're older. You'll be doing this someday."

Myra snorted loudly. "I doubt that." Jaz giggled.

Torah hugged both of them to her. "Myra, it's normal. I can assure you that much."

She shrugged. "Maybe." She grinned at Jaz.

Jaz grinned back. "Maybe."

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That's the end! I really hope that you guys liked it! I would like to thank all my reviewers, GuitarBlonde, Moony's Shady Lady, ChocolateCoveredStrawberries, 13.Shimer.13, and Lady-Luthien-Ancalimon. I would especially like to thank SOPROL and C.McPherson, my two most frequent reviewers. They reviewed my first book and this one. I could have never done it without you guys! I also want to thank SOPROL for the name Myra and C.McPherson for the name Jazmyn. C.McPherson also needs thanked for helping me out through tight-spots and giving me constructive criticism the whole way through.

I'm really sorry about ending it without telling you that there's going to be so many chapters left, but I wanted to make it longer, but it was just too weird writing about the twins. This is the best I can do, and it's like my fourth draft.

If you have questions, or suggestions on what my next fic should be about, please tell me! I would also love to get to fifty reviews, but I doubt if I will. If everyone who read this could review, I would be very happy. If I forgot to mention you above, or if you read but didn't review, then please know that it isn't too late. You can always review and have your name added.

Here are the names of Torah's kids:

Myra – 11 – mage

Jazmyn – 11 – knight

Jon – 9 – Healer

Alana – 7 – knight

Ely – 4 – Queen's Rider/Court Lady

Kalon – 0 – King's Own

Lia – 0 – Court Lady

Tom – 0 – Healer

Well, please, please review! I hope you liked it!!!


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